


Inky Depths Below

by Gears112



Series: Inky Depths AU [1]
Category: Bendy and the Ink Machine
Genre: Gen, more like tranformations instead of dead, there's some minor character death but not really
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-03
Updated: 2017-07-12
Packaged: 2018-11-22 21:36:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 21,754
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11388903
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gears112/pseuds/Gears112
Summary: A take on the events of BATIM, with my take on what's happened to Sillyvision, what's going on, and what's in store for Henry as he explores the madness of his old friend. Will have some mildly tense scenes and subjects, but not much more than what we've seen from the game so far.





	1. Angelic Reunion

**Inky Depths Below**

_ A Bendy and the Ink Machine Fan Fiction _

Chapter 1: Angelic Reunion

The cartoon angel hummed to herself as Boris and Henry rounded the corner. Henry knew he should've been at least slightly more surprised, but considering the past hour and a half, this was was the most normal thing he had seen all day. Boris entered the room first and knocked on the door jam, grabbing the attention of the angel. "O-Oh! Boris! You surprised me." She said sweetly. "W-What do you need?" The cartoon wolf opened his mouth before closing it, frowning for a few seconds before holding up his fingers. The angel frowned and cocked her head in confusion as even Henry looked at the wolf briefly before looking back at the hallway, making sure they weren't being followed. "Um...ok, one word?" The wolf nodded before mimicking writing something. "Writing? No, um drawing?" The wolf excitedly nodded before doing a slowed down dance. The angel blinked silently for a few seconds before sighing. "Just get to the point Boris," The wolf made an overdramatic sigh before grabbing Henry's arm and dragging the older animator into the room. "A guest? Well, we haven't had a guest in a-" She started to say before Boris spun Henry around to look directly at the angel, whose eyes widened in shock. "H-Henry?" Henry noticed that the slightly higher pitched voice seemed to crack as the angel tried to fight back tears. "Oh gods it's really you…" She rubbed her eyes before looking around panickingly. "What are you doing here?! If any of the members, or if Sammy or Joey-"

"I got an letter from Joey," Henry said. "And Sammy's...busy." He mumbled, feeling a chill as he remembered the former music director's screams of terror as the demonic mockery of Bendy killed him. The angel frowned momentarily before sighing sadly.

"You shouldn't be here...Joey's lost it…it's not safe here…."

"I noticed." The angel looked up at him with an eyebrow raised. "It's been a weird day."

"Yeah...but at least on the positive side, I get to see you again. It has been a few years since you worked here…" She chuckled as Henry and Boris's faces fell as they stole looks at each other, earning the angel's confusion. "What's wrong boys?"

"It's been 30 years since I left the animation business…" The angel blinked slowly as that set in. She stepped back and leaned on a chair. "3-30 years…" Henry nodded somberly. "I-I-It's been 30 years…" She rubbed her eyes with her free hand. "W-We've been stuck down here….30 years…." Henry quickly got to her eye level as the angel started to hiccup and tear up.

"Alice…" He stopped and sighed. "Susie…" The angel looked up at him, her face stained with inky tears. "Susie, I don't know what the hell Joey did or is doing, but I'm going to at least try and fix it...and get everybody out…"

"R-Really?" Henry nodded as he pulled out his handkerchief and handed it to her. "Promise." She smiled weakly before she blew her nose, a car honk loudly blaring as Henry sighed at the inky mess that remained on his handkerchief as the angel sheepishly looked at him.

"Keep it Susie…"

"Thanks Henry…" She wiped her face before chuckling absently. "I haven't heard someone say my name in a long time…" She sighed. "Just off the tapes...Joey doesn't like that I'm not fully Alice Angel, you know how she was written and stuff, but I'm not fully how I was as Susie…" She looked at her white gloved hand. "At least I'm not a puddle…" She stopped as they heard footsteps. She gasped and quickly took Henry's hands, dragging to him to a spare room. "Here! Hide in here!" Before he could ask why, he was shoved in and the door slammed behind him. Susie coughed a few times before chuckling. "Oh Mr. Drew, what brings you to see little ol' me?"

"I heard you singing and talking." The familiar gruff of his old boss sent both chills and an annoyed feeling through Henry. "And I wanted to see who was here with you."

"O-Oh...well...Boris here showed up...and you know, it's a little boring sitting and doing nothing all day…" Henry heard Joey chuckle before hearing a bemused chuckle; probably the boss inspecting Boris.

"He appears to be stable…." Henry stifled a chuckle as Boris made a confused yip and Joey sighing; Joey was always a habit of thinking people could read what he was thinking at the moment.

"Please tell me that doesn't mean what I think it means…" Henry felt a chill as he heard Joey chuckle darkly.

"You know how well Sammy was as a music director. Seemed only fitting." There was dead silence before Henry heard Joey turn. "I have some business to attend to, unfortunately. Good to see that you are still doing well, Alice. Keep an eye on Boris for me, will you?" Joey left the room and after a few minutes, Henry carefully opened the door and saw Boris trembling, staring intensely at the floor. Susie looked at Henry, panic obvious in her eyes before she frowned and her cheeks puffed up.

"DAMNIT JOEY!" Was Henry's best guess at what Susie yelled, as her curse was replaced with a bike horn. She stomped her foot and cursed, the sound effects replacing the offensive words. Henry did his best to stifle his laughter, as Boris even looked up, a smile creeping on his face as he watched the old man try not to laugh and offend the cartoon angel, but failing miserably. Finally a few seconds later, Henry lost the battle and started laughing uncontrollably, stumbling to his rear, surprising the two toons. The two looked at each other before they started to chuckle as well; it wasn't everyday you saw a 60+ year old man on the floor laughing. After a few minutes, Henry managed to catch his breath.

"I-I'm sorry…" Henry managed out. "I s-shouldn't have laughed…" Susie rolled her eyes.

"Oh poo, it was kinda funny admittedly…" She said. "And at least I still know the words…" She sighed and smiled softly at Henry. "And I'm glad that at least you've still got your sense of humor." Henry felt a bit of his cheeks go warm as he smiled sheepishly as Boris rolled his eyes, as if to say 'In case you two forgot, Drew just dropped a massive bombshell about me and we still need to get out of this rotting piece of junk. Susie looked up at him and pouted. "Can you speak at all? I know for a fact that you had a voice actor." Susie tapped her chin, her foot tapping along in time. "Oh what was his name? It wasn't Sammy…." Henry paled as an old memory trickled back to the surface.

"No…" Henry said softly before he shot up and bolted from the room. "I got to find Wally!"

.

* * *

.

_1924_

_"Ok, Drew," The gruff Brooklyn accented man grunted as he, Henry, Sammy, and the newest hire, a woman by the name of Susie Campbell, were in one of the recording rooms, with their boss, Joey Drew, holding pieces of script. "Why in the Hell do you need all of us?"_

_"With the new advancements," Joey said, a stickler for mild dramatics. "I believe that Bendy and Boris need voices in conjunction with our new leading lady." Susie covered her mouth, stifling an embarrassed giggle as Wally looked unimpressed._

_"So you couldn't be bothered to hire two mooks?" Joey glared at the man before Henry stepped in between the two._

_"Think of it as adding more to your skills." Henry said, hoping to avoid another confrontation. "If Bendy cartoons get popular-"_

_"Which they will." Henry ignored his boss's statement. "You'll be know as "the voice" as Bendy or Boris…" Henry finished as Wally gave him a 'seriously' look, which Henry mouthed 'Work with me Wally'. The man sighed in annoyance._

_"Fine, fine, whatever." Wally said, before turning his attention to Joey. "And Wet Blanket is here because…?"_

_"I'm the music director, Franks. It's my job to make you sound good, as challenging as it will be." The sandy blond grunted, adjusting his glasses and Henry bit back a sigh; he honestly felt more like a babysitter than an animator. He looked at Susie, who was admittedly caught off guard by the bickering from the janitor and music director and offered her a sympathetic smile._

_"Enough." Joey's stern and direct tone got everyone's attention. "I'd rather not keep anyone longer than needed, so let's get started. Wally, I would like you to read Boris's parts. Henry, you take Bendy's voice, and Ms. Campbell, you know what to do."_

_"Yes sir!"_

_"Whatever, Drew."_

_"Alright Joey."_


	2. Get Outta Here!

**Inky Depths Below**   
  
_A Bendy and the Ink Machine Fan Fiction_  
  
Chapter 2: Get Outta Here!  
  
"Holy Toledo!" Susie exclaimed as she and Boris rounded the corner, chasing after Henry. "He sure moves fast for an old guy!" The wolf nodded before they noticed the ink monsters beginning to form. A bicycle horn swear came from Alice, grabbing the monsters' attention, but allowing Henry to easily run past the Searchers, heading into one of the rooms. Boris gave her a look and she glared at him. "What?!"  
  
Henry made a strained sigh as he saw a body of a withered looking old man, stained with ink, huddling in the corner as he entered; he had given up the idea that his co-workers managed to escape the insanity when he saw what happened to Sammy. He shook his head, trying to dispel the memories of earlier.  
  
"W-Wally?" Henry said slowly, hoping to not startle the man, whoever he was, if he was still alive. The old man weakly looked up in response.  
  
"H-Henry?" Henry winced at how hoarse the voice was. "Wha...hell you doing 'ere?" Henry quickly came over, to aid his former co-worker.  
  
"Joey sent me a letter." Even despite the ink and discoloration, Henry was able to see the annoyed disbelief on the janitor's face as he helped the man to stand, using himself as support. "I had no idea he went this nuts. I was more expecting patronizing gloating over how well Bendy was doing in the cinemas and how I was a fool for leaving and trying to start my own studio before the Depression hit..." Wally made a horse laugh before coughing and spitting out ink. Henry raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Don't ask."  
  
"Wasn't planning on it…" The two old men looked up as they heard the sound of the ink monsters and the cursing of the former voice actor-turned angel. Henry mentally cursed, realizing that he had not any way to fight back, especially now that he was supporting Wally. "Damnit…I don't have an axe…" There was a loud foghorn sound and Henry couldn't help but snort at the face Wally made. "Who knew Susie had a mouth on her?"  
  
"That's Susie? B-but J-Joey…he-" Henry was about to explain before the angel and Boris, messily covered in ink caught up and were in the hallway. There was an awkward silence as Wally stared at the two toons, Henry adjusting his support for Wally.  
  
"U-Uh...Hiya Wally?" Alice managed out and a few awkward seconds later Wally finally spoke.  
  
"Once I punch J-Joey, I'm outta here and getting a stiff drink." Alice beamed and even Boris looked happy as Henry smiled, trying his best to ignore the numbing pain crawling up his legs. However, Wally must've sensed something as he turned to Henry. "Y-You ok?"  
  
"Fine." Wally made a hoarse groan of annoyance and looked at the two toons as Henry quickly added. "N-No, I'm fine! Really!"  
  
"One of yous help keep me up," Wally ordered. "And somebody grab Henry a chair."  
  
"Wally I'm fine-" Henry said, bit back a gasp as the pain flared up. Alice quickly hurried and found a chair, putting it behind Henry as Boris took Wally under the arm, taking the brunt of the support as Henry's legs collapsed and he slumped into the chair.  
  
"H-Henry! What's wrong!?" Alice exclaimed and Henry forced a smile, though it looked more like a grimace.  
  
"I-It's just an old flare up…" Henry said, pain obvious in his voice; out of all the times for this to happen, it had to be while he was trying to escape the studio with his life. Alice frowned and crossed her arms.  
  
"Henry, you're hurt." Henry mumbled a retort under his breath as Alice started to inspect him, gingerly putting pressure on his body, to test the tenderness and see if he was majorly hurt. Henry tried to not show his wincing as Alice got to the welt on his head from Sammy's blow, when she stopped. "W-What happened here?"  
  
"Sammy got me from behind…" The angel gasped as Wally grunted.  
  
"Didn't think that bastard was still here...not after the sixth time those pipes broke in his office…" Wally muttered. Boris and Henry shot each other a shaky look as if debating on telling the janitor what happened to the music director before Alice made a 'tch' sound.  
  
"Well, you're not going anywhere, not without some rest first." Henry was about to open his mouth, but decided to not ask as if he remembered correctly; both Susie and the character of Alice were a bit stubborn. He sighed and Alice smiled. "Now, you two boys relax, me and Boris will watch the place."  
  
"Don't need to tell me twice…" Wally mumbled as Boris helped him towards another chair. "Who would've thought I'd be drained by a two minute stand." He snorted before coughing and hacking, spitting out more ink. Boris made a disgusted whine, earning a glare from Wally. “I don’t n-need your sass.” Henry sighed as Alice helped him lean back, humming a melody he didn’t recognize. Henry felt his eyelids get heavy and as much as he wanted to fight it, he soon fell into a deep sleep.  
  
.

* * *

.  
  
  
_"Mr. Lawrence?" Sammy looked up from the blueprints that Joey had given him to check over and adjusted his glasses as Susie Campbell stood at the door, rubbing her hands nervously. "A-Are you busy?"_  
  
_"O-Oh no, no! Of course not, Ms. Campbell! Please, come in." Sammy said quickly, offering her a seat. "Is something wrong?" Susie looked at the ground, spiking Sammy's curiosity and concern. "You can tell me,"_  
  
_"I think something is wrong with Mr. Drew."_  
  
_"What else is new?" Sammy snarked before he caught himself. He coughed nervously. "Ah, I mean...he is a slightly eccentric man…Considering he put that in my office." He gestured to the pump control and Susie made a quiet sigh._  
  
_"It's not that...a-at first I thought it was just him reacting to Henry leaving…" Susie said slowly, rubbing her arm. Sammy nodded curtly, remembering the yelling match that happened before Henry had stormed out the beginnings of a bruise forming on his face as he left. "B-But he keeps mentioning about appeasing-"_  
  
_"Lawrence!" Sammy and Susie admittedly jumped as Wally knocked on the door. "I don't know what the hell Drew's on, but he wants to see you in his office." Sammy glared at Wally and let out an annoyed sigh._  
  
_"He does know the music doesn't write itself, correct?" Wally shrugged._  
  
_"Don't look at me, he's lost it, but hey, he's the one writing the checks." He looked at Susie and smiled at her. "Ms. Campbell." She offered a shaky smile before there was the sound of a pipe bursting. "Son of a-" He caught himself before rubbing his temples. "Why the hell does he need that noisy machine!? Ugh, I swear, if those pipes keep bursting-"_  
  
_"You're outta here." Sammy finished before standing, earning an annoyed look from the janitor. "I'm sorry Ms. Campbell, we'll have to finish our discussion later. But I wouldn't worry too much." Susie nodded, uncertain. "Mr. Drew is just being as he is, over dramatic and full of theatrics. He wouldn't do anything that would risk shutting the studio down."_  
  
_"That's one thing we can agree on! It's a miracle!" Wally laughed, earning the glare of the bespectacled man as Susie chuckled, feeling slightly comforted with the two, though there was still an uneasy feeling at the back of her mind._  
  
_"Thank you, you two."_


	3. The Illusion of Living

**Inky Depths Below**

_ A Bendy and the Ink Machine Fan Fiction _

Chapter 3: Illusion of Living

_ "Joey! What the hell are you doing?!" _

_ "Isn't it obvious?" Henry watched as his former friend chuckle, insanity clear in his eyes as he walked in front of Henry, his own body stained and dirty from ink while holding his book, 'The Illusion of Living', like an actor giving a performance on stage. "A show can't begin without it's main star." _

_ “What?!” Joey just smiled. _

_ “You’ll see in just a moment.” Henry felt the room shake as the inky monstrous mockery of Bendy rose from the floor, looking straight at him, the cartoon smile plastered on his face. Henry tried to step back, but found his feet frozen in the ritual circle he found himself in. Henry looked around in a panic, trying to find a way to escape as 'Bendy' tilted its head to the side, as if curiously studying him and planning the best way to rip him apart. Joey didn't seem to take notice of the ink monster as he took a brief look. "Now, let's the show on the road as they say," The monster lunged for Henry, it's dripping hand closing around his neck before Henry could even think of dodging. Inky claws dug into Henry’s neck, as the man tried to let out a scream, but a searing and heavy numbing pain all over his body began to overpower him. Henry tried to get free, but as he struggled to hold his breath, everything becoming limp and heavy, he heard Joey chuckle. _

_ "This is only the beginning, my friend!" _

.

* * *

 

.

Henry woke up with a start as he heard a surprised cry of panic. He quickly tensed and reached for his axe, before he remembered what happened earlier. He looked around the room, surveying his surroundings and saw Alice over by a inky huddled mess, with Wally nowhere to be seen.

"W-What's going on?" He managed out and Alice looked back at him, panic obvious.

"Something's going with Boris!" Alice seemed to have sense his concern as she shook her head. "I don't know where Wally went! I went to go look in the hallway and when I turned back around he was gone! A-And Boris was like this!" She quickly rubbed at her eyes, as Henry slowly got up, thankful that the pain was gone and went to Alice.

"Alright, ok, we'll find Wally after we help Boris out…" Alice looked at him. "Wally's stubborn enough to take care of himself." Alice snorted softly before turning her attention to Boris, the mass of what appeared to be black and white ink making low whimpers. "Boris?" There was a pathetic whimper. "Boris, it's ok...it's just me, Henry, and Susie here…" The inky mess that was the former wolf turned slowly and Henry and Alice stepped back as the 'wolf' reached out to them, the maw of the creature slowly pulling apart to make any noise. Alice let out a squeal and hid behind Henry, who was looking for something within grabbing distance to protect himself and Alice before the mess started to make a sound and seemed to tremble, though he didn’t seem in any pain.

"Henry, w-what's happened to him?" Alice whimpered as Henry recognized the noise the inky wolf was making as the wolf leaned back.

"H-He's laughing?" Henry said slowly as the sounds became more recognizable as laughter as the dripping eased and Boris started to turn more into how he was looking before, minus the missing cavity in his chest when Henry had first found him strapped on the first floor. "He's laughing…" He looked at Alice slowly. "I'm not dead am I?"

"If you are, I'd ask for a refund from the Big Guy for this being your limbo." Alice pointed up to the ceiling, sending the wolf into another howling fit of laughter. Alice looked at Boris before looking up at Henry. "It wasn't that funny."

"Not really…" Henry sighed. "Well, since Boris is ok, I guess, we should look on finding Wally…" Alice nodded.

"You two are a hoot!" Boris managed out, wiping his eyes. "Ah, Bendy would've love seeing your face, Al!" He looked at Henry and frowned. "Uh...who are you buddy?"

"He's Henry." Alice said, as if it was obvious. Boris tilted his head in confusion. "He created the shorts…"

"For a bit." Henry mumbled, earning a mildly annoyed glance from Alice before she turned her attention back to Boris.

"Anywho, he's one of the ones who made the Bendy shorts in the first place." Boris still looked confused and Alice sighed.

"Bendy doesn't wear shorts though." A small bicycle bell noise came from Alice, surprising the wolf as Henry rubbed his temples, a headache aching at the back of his mind.

"Susie, we can worry about this later," Henry said quickly, hoping to avoid a confrontation. "We should figure out where Wally went." Boris furrowed his brows.

"What? Hold on, what are you two talking about?!" He demanded. "And Al, what's with you, you're an angel! You aren't supposed to curse; you’re a goody-two shoes!" He turned to Henry. "And why did you call her Susie?" Henry sighed before sitting in the closest chair and let out a tired sigh; they didn’t have the time for this, but Henry had a feeling that Boris would be suspicious of him if he didn’t at least partially explain what was going. And if that ‘Bendy’ could convince Boris that he was a threat, well, Henry didn’t want to think about it, instead shaking his head and looking at Boris.

"I'll try my best to explain what's going on, but even I've got no idea really…" Henry began to explain how he and Joey first came up with the cartoon devil, creating the studio and working together, quickly skimming over the fact that he had left under not-so-great terms with Joey. Luckily Alice stepped in and explained the bits of pieces she remembered, with the Ink Machine and people disappearing with the ink creatures showing up, when Henry continued with getting the letter from Joey and his 'adventure' for the past few hours. Boris's reactions ranged from disbelief to horror and a bit of sadness, but Henry wasn't sure; he wasn't that great at reading people. "...And that leads up to now…" Henry finished awkwardly. "With us about to look for Wally, the janitor…"

"Huh…" Was all the wolf said slowly, and Alice gently patted Boris's back.

"It's going to be ok; Henry's gonna help us out…" She said and Henry let out a breath he didn't realize that he was holding; this was much more than he was expecting returning to the studio.

"We should...get moving." Henry said, getting their attention. "We need to find Wally and get a way out of here." Alice nodded and helped Boris up, before helping Henry up. He let out a tired grunt. "I'm fine!" He said as he spotted the eyebrow raise from the angel. "I'm just old, Susie...honest,"

"Uh huh." Henry saw Boris cover his mouth, holding back a snicker and mentally rolled his eyes; wondering how both how he got into this mess and how these turn of events would play out. As they left the room to look for Wally, Henry's thoughts went back to his nightmare earlier; he still had no idea if Joey was actually alive down here, or what he was planning with the 'Ink Machine', but one thing Henry was sure of, he wasn't going to like it, nor was he going to let Joey get away with it.


	4. Where's Wally?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Very Important: From this point on, there will be some more obvious differences between this version and the version I have on FanFiction.Net. Essentially it is the same story, just some different words/more details

**Inky Depths Below**

_ A Bendy and the Ink Machine Fan Fiction _

Chapter 4: Where's Wally?

"So what all happened outside the studio?" Angel asked as they walked around the studio, hoping to have a conversation to break the numbing quiet, with Henry having found another axe to use as a weapon, though why an animation studio needed this many axes was beyond him. Henry shrugged, uninterested.

"A bunch of things admittedly;" Alice rolled her eyes.

"Any specifics?" She asked, before a smirk appeared on her face. "Like maybe you met a special someone~?" Henry blinked in confusion and Alice groaned. "Did you tie the knot?" Henry shrugged.

"No, not really." Alice raised an eyebrow, not buying it in the slightest. "Was kind of busy."

"With what?"

"Stuff." Henry said, not wanting to go into details.

"Like what?" Boris asked. Henry let out an annoyed sigh.

"Stuff. Stuff." Alice and Boris looked at each other, unsure if they should press the matter as they snuck into another office. Henry looked under the desk and cursed. "Shit, he's not here either…"

"He shouldn't have gone that far, right?" Boris asked. Alice nodded as they heard more boards collapse. Henry let out a groan.

"Damnit...we're running out of time…" He rubbed his temple, steadying himself against the desk before looking at the two toons. "What the hell is Joey trying to do?" Alice shrugged as Boris froze up as if he received a shock. Alice and Henry looked at each other before looking at the wolf. "Boris?"

"Joey…" Was the only thing the wolf said, as if he was trying to remember something before his ears perked up and he growled as he seemed to realize what he was thinking. "JOEY DREW!" He raced out of the room quickly, howling Joey's name, his intention to harm the man pretty balant. Alice looked at Henry, who was looking at where the wolf went.

"T-That sounded like W-Wal-" Henry frowned before picking up Alice. "Whoa!"

"We can't lose him! Come on!" The man exclaimed before chasing after the wolf, the angel clinging to his shirt.

.

* * *

 

. 

_ "Mr. Franks?" Wally jumped as he quickly pocketed the paper he was reading. _

_ "A-Ah! Mr. Drew, wadda need?" Wally asked as he turned to face his boss, who was looking more gaunt and tired than usual. _

_ "I'll need your...assistance with something." Wally nodded slowly, trying to guess what it would be. "Follow me." _

_ "Y-Yes sir." Wally followed the animator down the halls. _

_ "What were you reading?" Joey asked after a bit. _

_ "Uh, it was nothing really boss…" _

_ "A letter from Henry?" Wally stopped, shocked that his boss knew. _

_ "How-" Joey casually looked behind him, a smirk on his face. _

_ "I have my ways." Joey continued to walk. "You're not getting fired Wally, so come along." Wally reluctantly followed, though grateful he wasn't being fired for speaking with the ‘traitor’, as Joey often mumbled. "So how is he?" _

_ "Fine...I suppose, he mentioned he was heading to Hawaii." Joey raised an eyebrow. "The doctor apparently said that the 'studio closing' and the related stress wasn't helping his health, and that 'fresh air' would help him recover." Wally noticed a corner of his boss's smile twitched and the janitor wondered how much his boss was enjoying the idea of his former friend failing at making his own studio. "So, ah, what do you need me to do?" Joey stopped in front of a room and opened the door. _

_ "Step in here." Wally walked into the room, beyond confused. Instead of animation sheets, or storyboards, the walls were covered in ritualistic markings and pentagrams and magic signs. _

_ "Uh...Drew, what's the mea-" Wally never finished what he was going to say as he turned he saw a black humanoid shape swing a wood board at his face, knocking him to the floor. As his vision blurred and faded to black, he heard his boss chuckle. _

_ "Excellent work, my prophet, he'll be perfect for the ritual. Get him tied up while I add the finishing touches to the circle." _

_ “Yes My Lord.” _

.

* * *

 

.

Henry and Alice barely managed to catch up to the wolf, as the wolf was tearing through one of the rooms, frantically trying to find Joey, growling being the only noise coming from him. Henry panted, definitely feeling the effects of thinking he was in his younger years, as he set down Alice and leaned against the wall, trying to catch his breath. Alice looked at him in concern as Boris let out a groan.

"He's not here!" Boris growled before noticing Henry. "Where is he?!"

"Who?" Henry managed out before he felt himself slammed into the wall.

"Boris!" Alice exclaimed.

"Joey! Where the hell is he?!" Boris snarled and Henry grunted.

"Your guess is as good as mine." Boris leaned in and Henry had to hold his breath the stench of ink and questionable quality of Bacon Soup not making a good combination of smells.

"I'm not in a laughing mood, bub. Now tell me, where the hell is Drew?" Henry was thankful he was still holding his breath as the wolf's reaction to his own sound effect replacing his curse was much more comical than the situation was. "What the heck was that?! What the fuck came out of my mouth?!" Henry was trembling, wanting to laugh, but also didn't want to die, as Boris looked offended as a bike horn replaced the curse.

"Boris! Knock it off!" Alice demanded, trying to loosen his grip on Henry by pulling on his tail. "Leave Henry alone! He knows even less than us!" The wolf blinked slowly as Henry felt the grip loosen slightly.

"H-Henry?" The man in question raised an eyebrow; was it just him or did the wolf sound like Sammy just now? Boris let Henry go and staggered back, as if terrified and realizing what he was doing. Alice placed her hands on her hips as Henry leaned against the wall, catching his breath.

"Now what?!" She snapped before Boris quickly bolted out of the room. "Whoa! Hey! Bor-Drat…" She looked at Henry. "Boris didn't hurt you too much, did he?" Henry shook his head quickly.

"I'm fine; believe it or not, I've dealt with worse…" Henry chuckled as he tried to stand up away from the wall, but a searing pain shot that idea down and he stayed against the wall, sliding down to the ground as his legs gave out. Alice's face fell and Henry waved it off. "I-I'm fine...we need to find Wally…"

"Henry what's wrong?" Henry looked at the concern look of the angel for a moment he could’ve sworn he saw the voice actress that voiced the angel instead of the toon angel. He sighed and looked at the ground, cursing the hallucination and the pain in his legs keeping him from getting up. "Henry, you can tell me...please, let me at least try and help you…" Henry chuckled slightly and looked up.

"Susie, you're stubborn, you know that?" Alice smiled.

"Well, it's a talent, Henry, why else would Joey hire me?" She struck a model's pose. "I wasn't much of looker after all." Henry snorted, not believing that for one second.

"Don't short yourself, Susie."

"Trust me, Henry, I wouldn't, I can barely reach the shelves with the Bacon Soup cans on it." She gestured to herself as if to emphasize the point, to which Henry lost it; laughing till he had to stop to cough for a bit and catch his breath. Alice rolled her eyes playfully. "Better?"

"Mildly." He admitted before sighing. "Alright….I'll tell you, but I'd rather not this get out around…" He trailed off, realizing what he said. He wiped his face and groaned. "Nevermind…" Alice held back a smile behind her hand, which thanks to the hole in her hand, Henry could see. He turned slightly pink in embarrassment.

"I won't tell anyone Henry…" Henry smiled before sighing.

"Thanks Susie...let me start from the beginning…"

 .

* * *

 

.

_ A sickening crunch and the pained cry of the young boy filled the air as the vehicle's tire swerved and squealed. _

_ "Boys!" _

_ "Henry! Joey!" _

_ "Someone get the doctor! One of the boys are hurt!" _


	5. Arguing with Oneself

 

**Inky Depths Below**

_ A Bendy and the Ink Machine Fan Fiction _

Chapter 5: Arguing with Oneself

Boris stumbled into one of the rooms, freaking out internally as he focused on his large rounded fingers.

"This can't be real…." He said to himself, his voice exactly like the former Music Director’s. "I-I was dead…that thing killed me...didn't it?" He tried to take off the glove to no avail and looked at himself in a reflective pool of ink. "And definitely not a wolf…" He sighed and shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts and calm down; he was definitely punching Drew for this. Speaking of the owner, where the hell was he in this hellhole? Boris looked around and huffed; he must've found his way back to what Wally called his office, a mess of papers and dripping ink, along with a haphazardly stacked pile of Bacon Soup cans. "Well, nothing's changed despite the insanity. He's a freaking pig...what did Joey see in that moron?" His ears perked as he heard an annoyed cough, a strange unfamiliar feeling. The cartoon wolf turned around and saw no one as there was an annoyed groan.

"Over here Wet Blanket." Boris looked around, not thrilled with the idea of seeing Wally again, but again couldn't see the janitor. A trolley bell came out of Boris's mouth.

"I'm losing it…." There was a loud groan from Wally. "Oh can it, you pig."

"Here, I'll wave to help your blind ass see where I am." Boris noted that Wally had to have a similar issues with sound effects replacing his curses as Boris's felt his left hand began to wave on it’s own.

"What in the blazes!?"

"What? I'm waving to you."

"My hand is moving on my own!"

"No, I'm waving at you, Sammy." Boris grumbled in annoyance; Wally wasn't helping in the slightest. "Ok, smart guy, you wave at me." Boris moved his other hand and heard Wally make a confused 'huh' sound. "That was my other hand moving…" Boris would've paled if he could as he put what happened together.

"This can't be possible…"

"What?!"

"We're stuck together….in this…" He gestured to himself. "We're stuck as Boris…" Wally was silent for a few moments before he finally spoke.

"Damnit Joey…what the hell were you doing?”

.

* * *

 

.

"Wow…" Alice said slowly as Henry finished, a quiet falling over the two. He nodded tiredly, drained, but the pain in his legs was slowly numbing and not bothering him that much. "I mean...you hid that very well…the limp…I don't remember ever seeing you having trouble-course that doesn’t really mean much-and you ran pretty fast today!" Henry shrugged.

"I usually power through it...though when it bites, it bites back hard…" He admitted before sighing. "That probably was one of the big things that cause me and Joey to fight so much…" Alice raised an eyebrow and Henry sighed, realizing he couldn't beat around the bush any longer. "Joey and me were best friends, since we were kids,"

"But what does that have to do with that accid…." Alice trailed off as she put it together. "O-Oh…"

"He'd claim I was overworking and risking getting hurt, and I felt like he was smothering me and trying to make up for it, or something…and it go on..." Henry sighed.

"He must've felt awfully guilty about it…" She said softly before frowning. "But that definitely doesn't excuse or explain all of this…" Henry shrugged.

"No offense to the man that signed our paychecks, but he's a few bricks short of a load." Alice snorted before there was a loud yip sound and the sound of canned soup being spilt. The two looked at each other. Henry slowly got himself up, Alice helping him as support. "I'm going to hope that's Boris or Wally, and not anything else…"

"Same here." The two carefully snuck towards the sound, before hearing what sounded like Wally and Sammy arguing with each other.

"I can't believe that you tripped!"

"Tripped?! You tripped me you klutz!"

"No I didn't! That was all you! You’ve got two left feet!" Alice looked at Henry.

"Well, sounds like nothing's changed between those two?" Alice tried to joke, but Henry was more concerned and confused; that definitely sounded like Sammy, but not the "prophet" that had tried to sacrifice him earlier He reluctantly followed Alice who found the room Boris was in, though he seemed to be arguing himself, surrounded by cans of Bacon Soup. Alice blinked slowly. "Uh...ok?" Boris looked up at her in surprise.

"Susie!" Was what he was trying to say, but sounded more like a mash of Susie and Alice. Boris frowned. "That's Susie you numnut! Nonsense, that looks exactly like Alice Angel! Well, gee you *car honk* who voiced the *whistle, airhorn* angel, huh?" Henry poked his head into the room, hearing the sounds. He raised an eyebrow and looked at Alice.

"I don't think I want to know…" He mumbled and Boris perked up, looking at him.

"Henry!" Boris exclaimed before gesturing to himself. "Tell this moron that she's Susie/Alice!" Henry blinked slowly and looked at Alice for help. The angel looked at him, annoyance clear on her toon face.

"I think I preferred it when he didn't talk."

.

* * *

 

.

The echoing dripping noises followed Bendy through the hall, reminding him with each steps that he still wasn't ready for the show, as Mr. Drew put it.

"I just need to get one more thing finished." The older man had promised. "After all, it takes special steps to make sure you're ready." Bendy wanted to be ready now, earning the man's chuckling when he had tried to ask, though it was moderately difficult when he couldn't seem to find his voice, but Mr. Drew was understanding. The older man placed a pale, ink covered hand and patted the top of Bendy's head, making the dancing demon make a sound that almost sounded like a pur. "I've made the steps to get you ready for the new show, in fact, it'll be here sooner than you think." Mr. Drew winked and made that expression that Bendy had no idea how to copy; it looked like a smile, but it seemed to be mischievous and seemed to say "I know something that you don't know yet", but Mr. Drew always seemed to know how to make Bendy feel better. "Why do go see if Alice will sing for you?" Bendy cocked his head in confusion, earning some chuckling. "I heard her talking a little bit ago." Bendy seemed to bounce with excitement; he had seen the angel hiding in one of the rooms, only coming out every once in a while to take a tape record and listen to it, never really speaking much. The idea that one of his friends was back to normal, filled Bendy with hope and giddiness. The inky mess of a demon hugged the old man, earning chuckling before the demon quickly 'ran' off, leaving trails of ink behind, unaware that the old man was smirking, knowing that the 'show' would begin again.

 


	6. Ghosts of the Past

**Inky Depths Below**

_A Bendy and the Ink Machine Fan Fiction_

Chapter 6: Ghosts of the Past 

_"What is the matter Bendy?" The inky demon held up the picture frame for his creator to see, having found it while snooping around one of the offices. Joey pursed his lips slightly as he took the picture and looked at it; it was an old photo of him and Henry, right when they first opened the studio. Bendy pointed to the younger Joey and then at the old man, who chuckled at the curious look the toon was giving him. "Yes, Bendy, that is me, when I was younger." The demon's mouth dropped as if he couldn't grasp the idea of aging, earning more chuckling from the man, before the man’s face dropped slightly as Bendy pointed to the other man in the picture and made a confused chirp like sound. Joey sighed trying to keep his tone neutral. "That's….Henry. He was a friend of mine." Bendy looked at Joey before frowning and performing a dramatic death, as if asking if Henry had died, complete with a white lily, though Joey didn’t have a reaction to that. "No, no, he's not dead. He left the studio…" Joey furrowed his brows, the anger and frustration coming through in his voice. "He fell to temptation and betrayed us…just a rotten traitor..." Bendy made a whimpering sound and Joey quickly patted the demon's head. "But do not worry your head, Bendy; it is in the past, and one day perhaps he will see the error of his ways." Bendy noticed the almost sorrowful and bittersweet tone in Joey's voice and decided that he was going to help fix this and help this Henry guy see the error of his ways and go back to being friends with Joey! Bendy beamed and seemed to be bouncing in place excitedly, earning the older man's curious eyebrow raise. "What are you thinking Bendy?" Bendy made his signature pose of "Not Telling", a finger in front of his cheeky grin, though it was dripping a lot of ink. "Alright then, I suppose I'll see what you're planning when you're done…" Bendy nodded and added a twirl as he turned to explore the halls again as Joey chuckled softly, being reminded of a small child the way Bendy acted._

.

* * *

 

.

"This is going nowhere…" The wolf mumbled, Wally’s voice the loudest of the two.

"Nonsense! I'm sure this will work!" Henry stifled a chuckle as Alice was helping Boris up, who was having issues staying upright and balanced; obviously the two that were now one cartoon wolf, or something-Henry was still on the fact Sammy wasn't as crazy as earlier-were not working together. "Now you two will follow Henry's orders on which foot to use!"

"What?!" The men asked in surprise. The angel beamed happily.

"You heard me, now let's try it~" Boris looked at Henry, as if he wanted him to tell Alice to stop being ridiculous, but Henry shrugged.

"Why not? It's not like we're pressed for time or anything." Boris frowned at the man's sarcasm before sighing, knowing he wasn't going to win, though the sarcasm went over the angel’s head.

"Fine…" Boris groaned after a few minutes of practice, and stumbling, Boris seemed to gain his footwork. Alice beamed in a 'I told you so' smirk as Henry chuckled, his mind being taken to one of the children he used to watch back when he lived before the war broke out; he wasn't sure what he was expecting when followed his doctor's orders and moved to Hawaii, but it wasn't as bad as he expected. He made friends, and while any dreams involving animating or creating more cartoons were dashed, he was know around the town as someone the kids loved to hang out with and learn to draw from after work or school. Henry let a shaky sigh, earning the concerned looks of Alice and Boris, before Henry held his shoulders and started to tremble, the bittersweet memories giving way to more darker, less sweet, memories. The sirens and panicked screams, the utter chaos that morning, trying to help friends find out what happened to their loved ones, the planes rushing overhead, the terror of wondering if they would drop bombs on them, to trying to help the wounded at the packed hospital, with even more men being carried in. Henry couldn’t hear Alice’s voice crying out in concern; only the pleas and begging of men struggling to cling onto that last bit of life, the cries of family members when he had to be the one deliver the news that the blue star in the window had to be changed to gold.

"Henry?" Alice asked slowly, stepping closer to the man. "Henry! What's wrong!?" Henry didn't respond, clutching his arms and trembling and Alice looked at Boris in a panic. "What's going on with him?!" Boris was quiet before slowly walking over to Henry.

"Henry, I'm right here," Alice recognized Wally's voice gently talking to Henry as the wolf took Henry's shoulders. Henry seemed to jump, but the wolf had a steady grip on his shoulders. "I'm right here...focus on me, ok? Focus on what's right in front of you, right now, in the moment…." This continued for what seemed like ages for the angel before Henry seemed to slowly snap out of it. "You alright now?" Henry nodded slowly, taking a shaky deep breath.

"Y-Yeah...thanks Wally…" He managed out.

"Wally...Henry...w-what happened?" Henry looked away from Alice, not wanting to talk about it, as Boris sighed.

"War strain." Wally’s voice came from the wolf in a very straight forward tone. "I've seen this kinda thing before; I'd rather not explain it right now, cause we need to…." Wally trailed off as he looked behind Alice. “W-What the...” The angel turned and gasped; in front of her was the mangled inky mess of Bendy the Dancing Demon. The demon had cocked his head, curious about the three. Henry paled as Boris held onto him; he really didn't have the energy to run for his life away from that thing. Bendy pointed to Henry and Alice didn’t waste a beat.

"Oh, that's a friend we found~" She said in Alice's traditionally soft, almost squeaky, sounding voice, obviously trying to be enough like Alice from the shorts long enough to convince the large inky monster to leave. "He just got a little turned around, so me and Boris are going to help him get back home." Bendy nodded slowly before pointing at Henry again. "Uh...you want to know his name?" She looked at Henry, as if asking him for help.

"Uh...I'm...Henry Ozell." Bendy nodded slowly; the three wondering what the demon was thinking as he was studying the older man. Henry had a brief thought wondering if Bendy could or even would recognize him, but luckily, Bendy didn't seem to recognize him as he looked at Alice and seemed to make a few hands signals that Henry didn't get, but apparently Alice understood perfectly as she frowned and placed her hands on her hips.

"Bendy! He is not that old!" Boris looked at Henry, confusion obvious on both.

"How in blazes does she understand him?" Boris whispered, Henry noting that it sounded more like Sammy than Wally at the moment.

"Why do you think I'd know?!" Henry whispered back. "I've been gone for 30 damn years! And the last time I was here, Joey wasn't this fucking insane!" There was an annoyed cough from the angel as Henry and Boris looked at the angel's unimpressed look as Bendy's face was priceless; apparently the demon had never heard curse words.

"Couldn't that have waited boys?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -My version of Henry's last name is a reference to the soda brand that took inspiration from Elias Disney's business ventures between 1912-1920


	7. The Ritual Begins

**Inky Depths Below**

_ A Bendy and the Ink Machine Fan Fiction _

Chapter 7: The Ritual Begins

Bendy was confused, but he was excited at seeing this new person. He looked similar enough to Joey, but had something above his lips that was a dark grey/black color, that he had seen some other people in pictures have, and he had glasses on, though there was some ink smudge and nearly falling off his face. He was a bit confused on the man's name, as it was the same name as the friend of Joey that had lost his marbles, but this couldn't be the same person; this man in front of him was old, not like in the photo and this man definitely didn't have the same hopeful look the man in the picture had as he was holding on the younger Joey's shoulder.

"Henry, seriously?" Bendy looked at Alice, who was scolding the old man for his whispering a few moments ago. Alice was usually a spoilsport like that, Bendy mused to himself; she never liked people whispering behind her.

"Sorry…" He mumbled, though he was still being held up with Boris's help. Bendy frowned slightly, wondering why the old man looked so tired and like he was going to pass out. The demon looked at Alice, wanting to ask what's wrong with the man, but couldn't. Alice sighed, as if being able to understand Bendy's look.

"It's been a long day, Bendy...The place is awfully big…and there’s a lot of stairs..." Bendy nodded slowly before he lit up, as an idea hit him; Joey was sure to be able to help this old man out of the studio! Alice raised an eyebrow, confused by the demon's seemingly sudden giddy movement before the inky blot hurried over to Henry, and before Boris or Henry could properly react, Bendy took one of Henry's hands in his own, as if to led the man to Joey. Suddenly there was a searing burning pain that jolted up his hand and Bendy yelped, yanking his hands back as Henry stumbled to his knees, clutching his hand, clearly in pain.

"Henry!" Boris exclaimed as he tried to help Henry to the ground. Alice rushed over to the two, looking at Bendy, who was making a whimpering sound, rubbing his hands gingerly. He looked up at Alice for help and Alice gently got down to Bendy's level and gingerly took his hands and looked at them; they were the same as in the cartoons, only with black melted effects peeping through what Alice only assumed were holes in the gloves. She gingerly rubbed her fingers across his hands, humming softly. Bendy's whimpering died down as he leaned closer to Alice.

"W-What the hell?!" Alice stopped humming and looked up at Henry and Boris, who were staring at his hand, which wasn't as ink covered as expected, but had a dimly glowing pentagram embedded in his hand. Alice paled slightly as Henry looked up at the other two toons, horror clear on his face.

.

* * *

 

.

_ "Go ahead Ms. Campbell, and remember, don't stop singing." Susie nodded, a sense of dread filling her stomach, she had no idea why her boss wanted her to sing one of Alice's songs, after all, it was already on a record, but he had insisted he need her to do it live. She took a deep breath and made a silent prayer before she began to sing. _

_ " **Far and Wide, I've been looking for it,** _

**_A Place to Call my new home,_ **

**_Where it's pure and light and so sweet,_ **

**_That even Heaven can't have it beat_ **

**_But I was not prepared for where it could be,_ **

**_For it seems my Home is on the_ **

**_Lighter Side of Hell~_ **

**_It's not pure black, yet not pure white,_ **

**_But for what it's worth, I shall not go back_ **

**_And I'll stay here on the Lighter Side of Hell~"_ **

_ As she sang, she felt a strange wet feeling climbing up her legs. She kept singing, as Joey asked, but she took a small look down at her feet, curiosity getting the better of her, before her eyes widening as she saw black inky substance starting to rise up on her. Her heart began to race as her singing started to falter as she realized she was standing in the middle of a glowing pentagram. _

_ "Keep singing Ms. Campbell." She barely heard Joey's stern voice reminding her as the substance rose up higher on her. She let out a blood curdling scream as the ink suddenly rose higher and quickly smothered her and the last thing she heard, was Joey's voice making a bemused 'huh' sound before there was nothing but blackness. _

.

* * *

 

.

Bendy pouted as his friends were focused on this Henry's hand; he had gotten hurt too, and so what if he didn't have a glowly mark on his own hand, but he was the star of the show as Joey put it, not this Henry guy! Bendy huffed.

"I don't see what the big ol' deal is about some glowly mark. I'm the star after all!" Boris, Alice, and Henry's heads snapped to look at Bendy, shock and surprise clear on their faces.

"He spoke!? What the *bell whistle*?!" Boris exclaimed. "He wasn't speakin' earlier! And what the *fog horn* is this *klaxton* Satanic thing you put on Henry?!" Bendy was both confused and moderately offended.

"Why assume that was me?"

"You're the only *fog horn* demon in the room."

"Besides that I mean!" Alice sighed.

"We have bigger issues than you two bickering." She said sternly, her voice slipping back into Susie's natural voice. "Henry's hurt, and now with this," She gestured to the mark on Henry's hand. "We don't have time to fight. We need to get out of here..." Bendy looked confused as Henry nodded tiredly.

“Get out of here, Miss Al-”

"Susie's right…" Henry said as he continued to catch his breath. "We need to figure out what the hell Joey is doing…"

"And you know," Boris said, Sammy's voice recognizable as the wolf gestured to himself. "Fix this, cause as much as I tolerated my position as Music Director here, and put up with that blasted Ink Pump, I am drawing the line at being stuck like this with Wally."

"Oh can it Wet Blanket, you think I'm enjoying this?! I'd rather be back in Europe than dealing with your whiny *bike bell*!" Bendy's face was priceless as Alice stifled her giggling at the demon’s face while Henry sighed as Boris argued with himself.

"It's a miracle we even got the studio running with you two constantly bickering…" He mumbled and Bendy froze, remembering the photo and what Joey had told him.

"Wait…" The demon asked slowly, looking at Henry. "Y-You're Henry in the picture with Mr. Joey?" Henry's face faltered slightly, wondering what was going to happen next. "You left the studio...you left Joey…" Alice looked at Bendy, concern obvious on her face as Bendy started to drip and take a slightly more monstrous form than what he was already was.

"B-Bendy…?" Alice started to say as Bendy started to tremble, various emotions and a mix of conficting feelings rising to the surface. Henry slowly managed to stand, not wanting to take chances and not gain a headstart if he needed to run as it was clearly obvious that something was wrong with Bendy. Even Boris stopped arguing with himself and looked at the smaller demon.

"Bendy?"

"Y-You betrayed us Henry..…Y-You left us…You left Joey..." Bendy looked at Henry, anger burning in his eyes as he lunged for the older man. "You TRAITOR!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As far as I know, the lyrics to the song Susie sang are my own creation.


	8. Quid por Quo

**Inky Depths Below**

_ A Bendy and the Ink Machine Fan Fiction _

Chapter 8: Quid Pro Quo

_ "And then?" Henry chuckled as the children crowded around him, excited about the man's story. “What happened after he ran at you two?!” _

_ "Well, and then of course we had to hoof it! Neither of us wanted to see if the rumors about the old man scalping boys he caught and wearing them on his belt were true! But luckily the two of us knew a shortcut through the woods. It was the same woods that Fisheye Jones and his gang had hid out when on the run from the federal agents," The kids gasped as Henry continued the story about one of his and Joey's exploits when they were kids, of course embellishing a few details to keep the kids entertained while the air raid sirens raged on outside. Once he finished his story, the kids excitedly whispered to each other and their parents about the story as Henry's thoughts wandered; He wondered how his old friend was doing, especially with the war going on. Probably having a blast doing propaganda shorts with Bendy or something along those lines. Henry sighed slightly; he wouldn't want to admit it, but he did miss his friend and missed working at the studio, even if it felt like Joey was being more like a mother hen than a friend, constantly distracting him from the animations and deadlines, concerned about him 'pushing himself too hard'. Henry unconsciously stuck his tongue out as he thought, an old habit since he was a kid, about that; how was he supposed to get back to normal if he didn't push himself? After all, that’s how he got better when he was sick, and after the accident. He shook his head as everyone heard the 'all clear' siren; maybe after the war, maybe he could send a letter to Joey and see if his old friend would be willing to meet again. As he followed the rest of the others, he gingerly touched his cheek, a bit of doubt in his mind; even if he did send a letter, would Joey even be willing to reconcile? Or was 20-some odd years too late? _

.

* * *

 

.

Henry wasn't sure another time he had ran any faster than right this moment. Luckily, Boris had tackled the lunging demon, giving Henry a chance to run for his life. He had no idea where he was going, but as long as it wasn't in the same room as the very angry demon-toon, he was totally chill with it.

"Why the hell is this place so fucking big!?" Henry yelled as he rounded a corner. He ran into an office and slammed the door behind him, hoping to give himself a moment to catch his breath. “Damn….I’m going to pay for that...later…” He looked around the room and realized he was in the old storyboarding room. He felt his heart drop a bit as he walked to the two desks he and Joey used in the early years of the studio, pitching and drawing whatever ideas they had, even the ideas were going to be scrapped later. He picked up the papers, which had a doodle of Bendy sprawled out, sleeping atop sheep, while Boris didn't look impressed on one, while a crumpled aged paper that Henry realized was one of the letters he had sent Joey during the time his friend had been drafted in the Great War. He could barely recognize his younger self's scribbling, but he definitely recognized the first look of Bendy as the demon was winking, telling Joey to 'Give 'Em Hell!'. “H-He actually kept my letters….d-damn…” Henry felt his eyes water and he quickly rubbed his eyes, starting to be overcome with emotion as he looked at the old memories, unaware that someone was behind him, with a wooden board. Board made contact with the old man's head, and said old man blacked out, only a groan escaping his lips, as the wielder of the board tossed his weapon aside and began to drag the old man, mumbling about 'appeasing the savior'.

.

* * *

 

.

_ "Joey, you're acting worse than the doctors…" The younger man grumbled as his friend was visiting him in the hospital, though the man in the hospital bed thought it was borderline smothering him with being concerned about his health. His friend chuckled weakly. _

_ "Sorry Henry...I just want to make sure you're ok…" Henry frowned slightly. _

_ "Joey, what's wrong? You look like you haven’t slept at all..." His friend sighed softly before handing his friend an envelope. _

_ "I got drafted…" Henry looked at his friend and then at the letter, as if he couldn't believe it. "I leave in less than a week…." _

_ "Aw man," Henry said after a moment before looking at his friend. "I guess that'll mean that we'll have to wait on making shorts...but wait a minute! You'll be able to get some cool stories or some inspiration!" Joey blinked, hadn't thought about that before. _

_ "I guess…" Joey said as Henry thought, his tongue out playfully. _

_ "And maybe you could also see what other people are doing over in Europe too," Henry said before chuckling nervously. "As tasteless as it sounds, you're lucky to get drafted Joey. I'll be stuck here for at least another month if not more…" Joey's face fell, guilt clearly on his face. _

_ "Henry, I'm so sorr-" Henry held up his hand, stopping his friend's apologizing. _

_ "Joey, knock it off with the apologies; it's not your fault." _

_ "You almost got killed because of me!" _

_ "I would've done it regardless." Henry said sternly, looking out the window. "Besides, it's not your fault, it's that old man who was driving like a devil was after him. Which is funny, cause the both of us weren't anywhere near him." Joey smiled slightly, remembering the nickname 'affectionately' given to the two of them by one of their older neighbors. Henry snorted, earning some confusion from his friend. "You know what we should do? A series of shorts starring a demon! A little dancing demon, just like us!" Henry laughed as if this was the funniest idea he had ever heard of as Joey smiled, moderately confused by his friend and part of him wondering if it was the medication talking. Another part of him, however, remembering reading in the papers about spiritual groups being caught trying to summon demons among other things, wondered if maybe there was another way he could make up for he had done. _

.

* * *

 

.

"LET ME GO BORIS!" Bendy snarled as Boris had him pinned down. Bendy may have had a monstrous form, but Boris was still slightly taller than the demon; thus making it easier to pin the demon down.

"Yeah, no," Boris said. "Frankly I'm not going to the Big House like this on assisted manslaughter." Alice rolled her eyes at Wally's bluntness.

"He's a traitor though! He left us!" Bendy argued though, still struggling. Boris looked at Alice in confusion.

"He left to create his own studio." Boris said. "And frankly, considering that fight between him and Joey before he left; it was probably for the best...You remember that, don't ya Susie? I swear had Henry didn't leave, Joey might've killed him right then and there. Or locked him in the supply closet for entirety..." Alice shrugged.

"Not really…most of it’s a blur..." It was Bendy's turn to be confused and concerned.

"A fight?" Bendy asked in disbelief; he knew Joey and he knew for a fact that Joey wasn't the type of guy to fight with anyone, let alone try and kill anyone! Boris sighed and reluctantly helped Bendy to a sitting position. "What are you talkin' about Boris buddy? Joey wouldn't hurt a fly!" Boris made a soft chuckle, though Bendy noted that it sounded forced and bitter.

"Yeah, you and me know two different sides of Joey…" Bendy was about to ask what Boris meant by that before the demon crumpled to the ground, out cold. "Whoa! Hey! Bendy! What the *whistle* happened?!" Boris shook Bendy’s shoulders, who only made a small groan. He looked at Alice. "He's out cold!"

"How?!" Alice exclaimed as she rushed over and examined Bendy before noticing a small welt on the demon's head, as if the demon had been hit behind the head. "What the…"

"We should find Henry…." Boris said slowly and Alice nodded curtly, a familiar sense of dread rising in her stomach.


	9. Henry Gets Tied Up Again

  **Inky Depths Below**

_ A Bendy and the Ink Machine Fan Fiction _

Chapter 9: Henry gets Tied Up Again

"Henry?" Alice called out down the hall and frowned as she didn't heard the man's voice. "He's not down here either…" Boris sighed as he readjusted Bendy, who while had gotten slightly smaller, was still out cold, but now on Boris's back as the two awake toons were looking for their friend.

"How are hard is it to find an old man?" Boris mumbled before looking at the ground. "Wait a minute...Susie, doesn't this look like footprints?" He gestured with his foot to the inky look splotch marks in the shape of feet.

"Yeah.. it does…" She looked over at the room where the feet seemed to have come from. "Oh?" She walked into the room and spotted the wooden board that had been used to knock out Henry. "Oh! Wally! Sammy! Look!" The angel picked up the board on the side that wasn't covered in ink. "Maybe one of those inky guys whacked Henry and took him somewhere!" Boris shook his head.

"Those things aren't smart enough to lift the board, let alone think that far ahead." Boris said, Wally sounding bitter. Alice figured he was just as worried about the older man's whereabout as she was. "Gotta be something else…"

"One of our coworkers?"

"I don't know...I don't remember them wanting to whack Henry before or being as nuts as Joey." The wolf sighed as Bendy stirred, groaning.

"Nugh...my head hurts…"

"Easy buddy," Boris said as Bendy lifted his head. "That welt on the side of your head is a doozy."

"Welt?" Bendy asked slowly before touching the back of his head. He winced and Boris rolled his eyes.

"I wasn't kidding…" Bendy whimpered and Boris sighed. "Just take it easy, I'll keep carrying you until you're better or we find Henry." Bendy grumbled at the mention of the name earning a groan from the wolf. "Well, excuse me for being concerned for a friend and former coworker." Bendy looked at him.

"What? What are you talkin' about Boris?"

"You wanna tell him Susie? Or should me and Sammy tell him?" Boris asked, looking at the unimpressed angel as Bendy was understandably confused.

.

* * *

 

.

Henry groaned as he slowly regained consciousness, finding himself tied to a pole. He looked around and found the pentagram and other ritualist symbols around the room. He groaned more in annoyance than in actual pain.

"I must have some royal ancestors with all the times I'm finding myself tied up today…" He sarcastically said to himself as he looked around, trying to figure out who tied him up this time and where he was. The room was dim, but Henry was able to make out an inky figure hunched over one of the floor symbols.

"Sammy?" Henry asked slowly, hesitant to say it was the former Music Director, considering Boris. The figure stopped and turned.

"Ah, you've awaken." Henry pursed his lips, trying to recognize the voice as the figure turned back to the thing they were doing. "I was beginning to think you would not be awake to see his glorious presence, a true shame,"

"Mark?" Henry guessed. "One of Sammy's interns, right? The shorter one of the kids he barked at?" Henry could've sworn he saw the figure make a frown as the figure looked back at him, but it was hard, considering the figure was covered in ink.

"You are unwise to speak so casually of His Prophet." Henry sighed, remembering his earlier encounter with Sammy, before he became Boris somehow. "But, you are correct on my name, but I am merely a servant of Our Lord." Henry took a slow frustrated sigh.

"I need a stiff drink."

.

* * *

 

.

"And that's all I can fill in for you, Bendy," Alice said as she finished explaining what she knew about this whole situation as they continued looking for Henry. Both Wally and Sammy had filled in the best they could as well, but both men's memories were shoddy at best. The little demon was quiet, Alice guessing that all of it overwhelming for the toon. She knew if it wasn't for the fact she wasn't in this weird in-between spot of either Susie or Alice, she would definitely be feeling overwhelmed. As for right now, the current feeling was concern for Bendy and worry for Henry. Bendy frowned and squirmed. Boris grumbled.

"Stop moving, or I'll end up dropping you!"

"My legs are uncomfy though!" Bendy whined and Boris let out an annoyed sigh, as if he was dealing with a small child, to which Alice figured was kind of true.

"Do you think you can walk?"

"Of course!" Boris looked at Alice before slowly setting Bendy down. The demon stretched his legs, frowning slightly.

"Everything alright?" Alice asked slowly and Bendy huffed.

"I'm not really sure Al-er-Miss Susie-" Bendy fumbled before perking up. "Wait a minute...You guys hear that?" Alice and Boris raised an eyebrow as Bendy looked around. "It sounds like it's coming from over there!" Bendy pointed down the hallway.

"I faintly hear something…" Boris admitted. "Sounds like someone explaining something…"

"Maybe it's Henry!" Alice said excitedly. "Come on, let's go check it out!" Bendy nodded in agreement and the two hurried down the hall. Boris opened his mouth, as if to point out the obvious shaky idea, but sighed as he realized that he better catch up to the other two, his thoughts on the idea be damned.

"Damnit Joey…."

.

* * *

 

.

_ "H-Henry!" Susie exclaimed as she rushed over to the man as he was pushing himself off the floor, his papers all over, Wally following behind. _

_ "I-I'm fine Susie." He grunted, forcing a smile. "J-Just tripped on my own two feet…" Wally frowned, not believing for one second, but Susie beat him to the punch. _

_ "Henry, that's malarkey!" Susie sternly said. "You're much more graceful than that!" Henry chuckled nervously as he struggled to get to his feet. _

_ "I'll go get Joey-" Wally started to say. _

_ "No!" Henry said quickly. "I-I mean no, no it's fine. Really, I just tripped...no need to get Joey involved…" He managed to get to his knees and started to gather the papers, trying to not show his grimace. "Besides, we can't have these shorts late...Sorry about making you two worried." He mumbled the rest as he got to his feet and quickly walked off, his face red with embarrassment. Susie looked at Wally, who seemed to know what she was going to say. _

_ "He doesn't want Joey to know about this," _

_ "But Wally! He's hu-" _

_ "All we know is that he fell." Wally said simply. "Obviously there's something he doesn't want us to know, so we'll humor him." Susie opened her mouth and Wally smiled softly. "Not saying we're not going to keep a good eye on him until either he trusts enough to tell us the truth, or Joey finds out on his own." Susie nodded slowly. "I know it's not the best idea, but it's the best option for now and Henry's got a point; those shorts don't write themselves." He sighed over-dramatically. "And frankly we don't need another theater show about 'studio morale' by Drew." Susie giggled slightly as Wally made a face before the two continued to the Music Department, unaware that one of the younger interns had seen the entire thing. The boy blinked slowly before running to tell Sammy and Joey what he had seen, though also trying to make sure Wally and Susie didn’t catch him. _


	10. He Returns

  **Inky Depths Below**

_ A Bendy and the Ink Machine Fan Fiction _

Chapter 10: He Returns

Henry sighed as he looked at Mark who was working on the symbols, who decided he wasn't in the mood for the old man's snark and was ignoring him.

"So what's it going to be this time? Sacrificing me to Bendy? Breaking my legs and leaving me to those ink torsos?" Henry asked, boredom clear in his voice; if he was going to die here, he was at least going to make Mark regret not killing him sooner. "Oh wait, I've got it; Joey did something incredibly stupid and now I've got-"

"STILL YOUR TONGUE!" Mark suddenly snapped as he slapped Henry across the face, the old man surprised at the strength of the inky young man among other things. "HOW _**DARE**_ YOU EVEN THINK OF MOCKING THE MOST BLESSED OF OUR LORD!?" Henry was still in shock at being smacked as Mark growled before stopping, as there was a small chuckling sound.

"Mark, your protectiveness of me is very honorable, I must say." Henry felt a pit in stomach as an familiar voice mused. Mark turned and got to his knees.

"Blessed One, you are too kind." Henry would've normally have made a quip, but he was still in shock with hearing that voice.

"Mark, I believe I heard more, guests, down the halls. Go bring them here to partake in the ritual; I shall speak with Henry here alone." Mark merely nodded and stepped out of the room. Henry finally found his voice as he shakily spoke, looking up at the owner of the voice.

"J-Joey?"

.

* * *

 

.

"Ow!" Bendy mumbled as Alice gingerly touched his cheek, where the faint outline of where someone had 'smacked' him had appeared.

"Sorry Bendy…" She said slowly, before sighing. "I have no idea how that happened.." Bendy whined and rubbed his cheek before Alice spotted Mark walking down the hall. "What in the world? Who is that?" Bendy was quietly rubbing his cheek as Boris finally caught up to the two.

"I'm just saying this is a horrible idea!" Sammy's voice was evident with irritation.

"Can it Wet Blanket, I'm not being left alone with just you in this hellhole." Bendy looked at Alice who shrugged, having no idea why the two were bickering now.

"Father Lawrence?" Mark asked in confusion and the three toons looked at each other other. "I hear your voice, but I do not see you…"

"Prophet?" Bendy wondered aloud before looking at Boris, who shrugged.

"Sounds a bit like Mark…." Alice mused slowly.

"Who?" Bendy asked, frustration obvious in his voice. "I'm starting to get really annoyed with being the odd toon out! What is going on?!" Mark came closer to the toons before bowing.

"My Lady," Mark said to Alice, who chuckled nervously, obviously not expecting that, before Mark registered Boris and Bendy. The inky figure made a confused noise before shaking his head. "You must be the ones the Blessed One were referring to."

"Blessed One?" Bendy asked, confused. "Who's that?" Boris frowned as the figure seemed to smile.

"I will show you. Follow me…"

.

* * *

 

.

"It has been a few years, hasn't it Henry?" Henry was still flabbergasted as the thing with Joey's voice spoke, walking in front of him; it definitely wasn't his former best friend, but it still has his voice. The thing seemed to smirk, as if realizing Henry's shock. The thing chuckled before its inky sheen seemed to shift and the taller thing took on a more familiar face. Henry's jaw dropped as this tall lanky demonic mockery of the tiny cartoon he had drew for so many years, shifted and became his former best friend, looking no older than the last he day he had last seen Joey, though slightly paler than how Henry remembered. Henry was trying to figure out what he was feeling as several conflicting emotions were running through him; horror at what had happened while he was gone; relief at seeing his best friend still alive; annoyance of his friend not untying him; and confusion on what the hell was going on. Joey chuckled at his friend's reaction. "You seem surprised, Henry."

"H-How…?" Joey chuckled before smiling and somehow summoning a chair for himself made of ink and sitting down casually, as if making an ink chair out of nothing was completely normal.

"A few things changed since you abandoned the studio." That seemed to snap Henry out of his shock as he frowned.

"I didn't abandon the place. I left, cause somebody kept treating me like a child." Joey frowned darkly before chuckling and shaking his head, as he was talking a toddler.

"Henry, you haven't changed at all," Joey mused. "Still as hard headed as ever...and stubborn to boot." Henry didn't look impressed.

"And you're still over dramatic and theatrical." Both men looked at each other for a few moments, trying to keep their glares at each other before they couldn't take the silence as they both snorted and chuckled, perhaps a small part of the both of them still being the close friends they once were. After a few moments, Henry sighed and looked at him. "Joey…" He shook his head, trying to think of the right words. "What the hell's going on here?" Joey raised an eyebrow before smiling, though Henry felt his blood run cold at the smile.

"Isn't it obvious, Henry old boy? I'm making things right."

.

* * *

 

.

_ "Sweet Mother Mary, what the hell was that noise?!" Wally exclaimed as he heard a loud banging noise. _

_ "Wally! Can you get to Sammy's office?" He heard Norman yell from the stairs. "Damn pipes bursted again and the stairs are flooded again!" Wally sighed in annoyance; what the hell was Joey thinking, installing this infernal Ink Machine? All it seemed to be doing was making a mess. Wally grumbled before making his way to Sammy's office, where he was met with a confusing scene. _

_ "Lawrence?" He asked slowly as he saw the music director, scribbling furiously on blueprints papers, ink covering most of his clothes. The man perked up and Wally blinked slowly; the normally put together (if not uptight) music director was looking disheveled and like he hadn’t slept in weeks, and his office reflecting his current state. "Uh...I'm just here to drain the staircase…The machine busted another pipe..." _

_ "Wally!" Sammy shot up from his desk and gripped the janitor's shoulders, surprising Wally with the strength of the almost desperate grip he was getting. "Wally! I've figured out how to fix the machine!" Wally nodded slowly. _

_ "Oh really now?" _

_ "Oh yes, yes! I have!" Wally wondered what caused his coworker to act like this as the Music Director scurried back to the desk, grabbing the blueprints before shoving the paper in the janitor's hands. "I-I need you to show this t-to J-Joey!" _

_ "Uh...why can't you?" Sammy froze before looking around, as if he was afraid of being heard. Sammy leaned close to Wally, the man struggling to not step back away from the director. _

_ "I-I can't W-Wally…T-the voices...they'll tell Joey, they'll tell him I've betrayed our lo-Him. W-Wally I-I can't have him notice me…" Wally decided that he wasn't going to ask Sammy about whoever 'they' or him were. _

_ "Alright buddy, I'll do this for you." Wally smiled weakly as Sammy looked relieved and a weight had been lifted of his shoulders. "But if this bites in me in the ass, I'm outta here." Sammy nodded slowly. _

_ "Of course, of course…" Sammy mumbled and Wally pursed his lips before turning the drainage pipe and leaving Sammy to do whatever he was doing. He later visited Joey after helping clean out Sammy's office when one of the pipes busted. He noted that Sammy was seemingly back to normal as the man grumbled and complained before storming to his 'sanctuary', to which Wally was actually grateful to see the man acting 'normal'. Joey actually seemed interested in the blueprints, but Wally wasn't sure why Sammy was so desperate about not being the one to give it to Joey, but Wally had to admit; Joey was definitely acting a lot stranger now that Henry had been gone. As Wally was leaving the studio for the night he looked up at the sky. _

_ "I wonder if Henry's still at his old address...maybe I can write him..." Wally said before chuckling. "Maybe he can help me figure out what the hell Joey means by his theatrics." The man smiled softly before heading home. _

 


	11. Not According to Plan

**Inky Depths Below**

_ A Bendy and the Ink Machine Fan Fiction _

Chapter 11: Not According to Plan

  _“Hey, Wally, you’ve seen Lawrence yet?” The janitor looked up from the trashcan he was looking through to find his keys at some of the band members._

_ “You guys haven’t seen him?” Wally asked slowly as the band shrugged, absently sitting and fiddling with their instruments. He looked at Norman, who shrugged. _

_ "He's not in his office, the voice actors haven't seen him either…" The janitor sighed. _

_ "Maybe he's in a meeting with Mr. Drew?" The cellist offered weakly and Norman nodded. _

_ "Maybe, I mean those meetings do take forever…" Wally nodded in agreement, his thoughts going back the panicked look of the Music Director's eyes as the man talked about Joey not "noticing him", wondering both if that had something to do with the missing director and if Joey would actually put the studio at risk. He sighed and shook his head. _

_ "Well, till Wet Blanket shows up, I guess we should keep working…" _

.

* * *

 

.

"What the hell do you mean by making things right?!" Henry exclaimed as he struggled to get free from being tied up. Joey ignored the demands by the old man, instead standing up and walking around Henry, inspecting the way Mark had tied him up. "JOEY! Don't you fucking ignore me! What the hell are you blathering about!? What do you mean making things right?!" Joey spotted the dimly glowing pentagram on Henry's hand and frowned.

"That isn't right…" Joey said slowly and Henry rolled his eyes in frustration.

"No shit Sherlock…." The older man snapped as Joey took Henry's hand, Henry shuddering at the coldness of his former-friend.

"This isn't right...it shouldn't be this mark….this is the wrong mark…" Joey looked at Henry, frowning. "What the hell did he-"

"Blessed One, I have brought the guests!" Joey straightened up and turned to face the toons, his manner quickly changing to a man that was still in control of the situation.

"Excellent."

"Henry!" Alice exclaimed.

"Joey!" Bendy exclaimed as well before sighing in relief. "Man, finally somebody who makes sense around here!" He gestured to the other two toons. "These two are confusing~!" He looked at Henry and raised an eyebrow. "Why's Henry tied up? I mean I know he's a traitorous spotlight-stealing jerk-wad, but isn't tying him up a bit overkill?"

"Says the idiot that was going to strangle him…." Boris mumbled and both Joey and Bendy looked at him in annoyance before Boris looked at Joey. "Now let Henry go before I kick your spindly *bell* into next week." Joey shook his head.

"Not until the ritual is complete. And with this new development, I will not let him go."

"Ritual?!" Henry demanded. "Joey what the fuck are you going on about!?" Joey sighed and motioned for Mark to leave. The ink figured bowed and walked out, closing the door behind him. Joey turned to Henry, the old man struggling to not shrink back from the man's glare as the other three were equally confused and shocked.

"That is a protection seal." Joey said darkly. "That isn't the correct mark…it s-should be a mark for a transmogrification..." Henry noticed that Joey seemed to be trembling or shuddering as Joey's features seemed to drip and droop. "It's at the wrong angle...there should be two pointing up…This isn't how it should work...why didn't it work?! It worked for Susie...what I did to the Music Department worked...so why not this time!?" Henry felt a small pang as he could've sworn he heard Joey's voice falter, like he was going to start tearing up. Boris growled and Alice frowned slightly as Bendy looked confused.

"What are you talking about Joey? Isn't that what we wanted?" Everyone looked at Bendy, who even himself looked surprised at what he was saying. "We wanted to help Henry...like how he helped us all the time? What better way is there than a protection seal? I mean I didn't finish it yet, but I can right now if you want it!" Joey looked at Bendy slowly and Henry shot a glance at Boris, who hurried over and quickly began to untie him while Joey was distracted.

"No...we were to fix him…" Joey said slowly before growling. "That isn't what I wanted you ** _IDIOT_**!" Luckily Boris had finished untying Henry and the old man spotted a nearby wood plank as Alice pulled Bendy back as Joey stepped forward. Henry grabbed the board, only hesitating for a moment.

"Joey...I'm sorry…" The old man managed out in a quiet voice before swinging the plank and hitting Joey upside the head. The other 'man' staggered back, his form taking the inky monstrous-looking Bendy from before as Joey turned back to Henry.

"YOU…."

"Time to go!" Boris howled and grabbing Henry and barely avoiding Joey's swing. They ran to the other toons and Alice took Bendy's hand and followed Boris as the four bolted as Joey yelled, enraged, and began to chase after them.

.

* * *

 

.

_ "Mr. Ozell?" Henry perked up from his sweeping and looked down at the owner of the voice; a 6 year old boy, and his slightly older sister at 8, looking sheepish. Henry raised an eyebrow and fought to keep his smile down as he spotted the shop owner roll their eyes _

_ "I thought I told you that you two can call me Henry? Unless of course you two are wanting sweets and thinking you can use my last  name to act all innocent, in order to get it, right?" The two children looked at each other in surprise, realizing that they were caught as Henry chuckled. "Two pieces, right?" _

_ "Actually, three!" The 6 year old said, excitedly. "Nana's here too!" Henry nodded slowly. _

_ "Well, you know I'll need payment from Nana too." He said, trying his best to keep a serious face as the two kids beamed before running out of the store, to get their 'Nana'. The shop owner chuckled. _

_ "You are spoiling them rotten Henry, I hope you realize that." The man shrugged playfully, before wincing slightly. The owner raised an eyebrow as the children entered again, dragging an older woman behind them. "Henry, are you alright?" _

_ "I-I-" Henry felt a searing pain along his throat and chest and collapsed to his knees, struggling to breathe and stay awake. The shop owner and the woman rushed over to him as Henry could've sworn he heard a familiar voice ringing in his ears before everything went black. _

* * *

__

_ He had done it, he had done it! Joey was almost giddy with excitement as he looked at what he had brought into this world; granted the demon was much smaller than he had originally expected, but he guess that must've been due to Henry's older sketches he had used as sacrifices, as Henry always drew the demon on the shorter side, especially so the demon could fit on the margin of letters he had sent him during his time over in Europe. Joey's face falter for a moment as he thought about his old friend, a brief questioning doubt entering his mind before he shook his head quickly, dispelling the doubts. _

_ "No, I can not turn back now…" He said to himself. "Not when I am so close…" He looked at the demon, who was curiously looking around with wide eyes, taking in everything before looking at Joey, who smiled. "Hello Bendy…Welcome to the real world..." _


	12. Lost Little Sheep

**Inky Depths Below**

_A Bendy and the Ink Machine Fan Fiction_

Chapter 12: Lost Little Sheep 

A loud foghorn echoed throughout the halls as the three toons and human rounded the corner before they found an office to hide in. After a few moments, they heard 'Joey' slug by, growling like some feral beast, before it became quiet again, Joey rounding a corner and walking away from their hideout.

"W-What the *trolley bell* was that?!" Alice exclaimed in a hushed whisper as Boris helped Henry to a sitting position on the floor, the older man trying to not show how much pain he was in. Bendy was quiet, almost forlorn, as he sat against the door. Alice looked between Boris, who shrugged. "That couldn't have been Mr. Drew! And what was he going on about?!"

"I think...I know what's going on…" Bendy said quietly, grabbing everyone's attention, hugging his knees as he looked up at Henry. "Joey used part of you to bring me here…" Henry opened his mouth in confusion. "Not sure of the details though…"

"But I was only your voice actor for you for less than a couple of months before I left. I don't see why Joey-" Bendy held up his hand.

"You created me. You were the first person to come up with my design… 'A little dancing demon, just like us'." Henry was a bit unnerved as Bendy sounded like his younger self for a moment, before the demon smiled sympathetically. "You're the one who drew me in your letters to Joey while he was overseas…" Henry sighed slowly and looked away. "Whether you like it or not, I'm part a big part of you as you to me. Without you, there's no me. And Joey knows that."

"Ok then," Boris said. "Why the *bell* is Henry still Henry and not stuck like me or Susie!" Alice looked at Boris before looking at Bendy. “I know Joey didn’t *fog horn* love me or Lawrence that much.”

"Well, I mean besides Joey doing it wrong?" Bendy offered. "More than likely, it's the fact that Henry wasn't close enough here for the ritual when Joey did it…" Bendy tapped his chin. "Hmm...but that doesn't explain why I'm still here...I should've just drip away within that first few months…"

"Sacrifices?" Alice asked slowly and Bendy furrowed his brows.

"Even if Joey sacrificed the entire studio, I would only be here for a few years! Unless…"

"Probably that Infernal Ink Machine…" Boris grumbled. "But even that's debatable; Joey's no mechanic, that thing was always breaking..."

"Unless?" Henry asked slowly, his thoughts going back to seeing the multiple coffins littering the studio as he shuddered.

"Unless maybe Joey sacrificed part of his soul….and didn't realize it? I mean, he is kinda droopy…" Bendy said before shaking his head. "I don't really know, I'm sorry I don't have any better answers guys, maybe more will click later..."

"It's ok, Bendy," Alice said softly.

"No, it's not ok." Boris said. "I'm stuck with Wet Blanket here." Alice glared at Boris as Henry made an annoyed sigh. "Don't give me that look he's a pain." Boris frowned momentarily, earning an eyebrow raise from the others. "Not going to lie, I'm expecting some snark back from you Lawrence...Lawrence?"

"What's wrong?" Henry asked slowly and Boris looked at him.

"I can't hear him...He's not saying anything...it's like he's not here…"

"But he was talking earlier…even Mark recognized his voice." Alice noted and Bendy nodded in agreement. “Though I have idea why he called Sammy ‘Father Lawrence’...” Henry furrowed his brows as he thought about what he remembered about Sammy before his face fell as it clicked on why the Music Director would be so quiet.

"Oh gods…Sammy..." The toons looked at Henry. “Father Lawrence was his father…”

“Well, that’s appropriate…” Bendy said, rolling his eyes and Henry shook his head.

“No, not like that, Sammy’s father was the preacher in town...Sammy was terrified of him…”

.

* * *

 

.

_"Can I help you sir?" Henry asked, disinterest obvious in his voice. The much older man furrowed his brows, clutching his black hat._

_"Where is Samuel Lawrence?" Henry didn't have a reaction._

_"Usually people send a card before showing up," The older man was not impressed with the sarcasm. "And who are you?"_

_"I am Father Lawrence," Henry made an 'oh' sound._

_"Appropriate first name I assume." Henry mentally smirked at the man's reaction; he of course knew of Sammy's father, the preacher and current pain in the ass for the studio. The man was pretty set that not only was animation the 'devil's work' but that his grown son should be in the clergy with, and that Henry and Joey were leading his son/sheep Sammy astray. 'Because clearly me and Joey are the devil,' Henry thought to himself before starting to close the door. "Well, sorry sir, but there's no Samuel here. Now if you excuse us, we're busy bringing people joy." The preacher was about to call Henry some unholy names, but the door was slammed in the man's face, ending the conversation. Henry sighed in annoyance as he turned away from the door. “Stubborn old goat…”_

_"Who was that Henry?" Joey's voice came from his office._

_"Nobody that important." Henry called back before noticing Sammy, who was leaning against the wall, about four seconds from entering the lobby and seeing his father. "Sammy?" The Music Director looked up with a weak smile._

_"This is the third time this week…." He said softly, obviously shaken by the idea of seeing his father again. "Thank you for handling him for me...though you've probably just angered him…" Henry shrugged._

_"It’s a talent, me pissing people off…” Henry sighed and shook his head before looking at the slightly younger man. “He should learn that you're an adult; you make whatever choices you want." Sammy nodded slowly as if he didn't totally believe himself. Henry smiled sympathetically and held Sammy's shoulders, making the slightly taller man look at him. "You're not him, never will be. I promise Sam, you're your own person...At the risk of being cheesy, you're Boris playing the song, not the sheep following along." Sammy snorted as Henry smiled. "I'm actually heading to get my fifth coffee right now before I have to get back to the inking, want to come along?" Sammy looked at the door warily, as there was some frustrated knocking starting up again before nodding._

_"Yeah...that sounds like a good idea…"_


	13. An Ugly Word

  **Inky Depths Below**

_ A Bendy and the Ink Machine Fan Fiction _

Chapter 13: An Ugly Word

Henry winced as he tried adjusting his legs so he would feel more comfortable; Alice and Boris were trying to "talk" Sammy out of his silence, with debatable success as Sammy was convinced he was just like his father with what Mark had called him and Henry guessed that he was remembering what had happened earlier, which was the nail in the coffin, so to speak for the Music Director. Bendy, however, was looking at him, arms around his knees. Henry couldn't lie, Henry felt a little unnerved by the little dancing demon's unblinking gaze staring, joke unintended, into his soul.

"Why?" Bendy suddenly asked and Henry blinked in surprised.

"What?"

"Why did you come back? I know Joey sent you a letter, but that basically had "trap" written over it, and I know you would've caught on to that, so why did you come anyways?" Henry was quiet as he mulled over his thoughts, thinking of the best way to explain his reasons as Boris and Alice looked at him, curious to know the old man's reasonings as well.

"...I knew that letter was a trap…” He finally said after a few moments. “Even if Joey was sincere, I doubt I would've gotten here without a scrape." He scoffed slowly. "I've just had some time to think about what really matters…" He shut his eyes as he continued. "And of course living through another horrific war helps put our stupid argument in perspective…" Boris and Alice's eyes widened in horror as Henry sighed before looking at Bendy. "I won't lie, I don't regret leaving the studio in the slightest, but it shouldn't have been under those circumstances…" Henry sighed and shook his head. "I don't think Joey could ever understand how much I hated those words…"

"What words?" Alice asked slowly.

"'You can't' or 'you shouldn't', everyone had been telling me that from day one… "Henry, you shouldn't push yourself, you remember what the doctors said," “Henry you shouldn’t do that, you’re still sick, you’re still injured!” "Henry you can't be walking yet!" "Henry, you're still hurt, you shouldn't-you can't do that." It was so frustrating to hear it from family...the doctors...complete strangers...people who I thought were my friends and not like the rest! Who I thought treated me as an equal and wouldn’t treat me like a fucking CHILD!" Henry yelled the last part before he realized his cheeks were wet. He rubbed his eyes and he looked away in embarrassment.

"Henry…" Alice said slowly after a moment.

"I trusted him…" He whispered, losing the fight against his tears. "He was my best friend….He was supposed to support me, have my back….but I guess he was nothing but a liar….he never cared..." He struggled to steady his breathing, Alice coming over to offer a comforting hand as Bendy looked at the ground, seeming to studying the different ink splats, seeming to mouth the words Henry had said he hated so much.

.

* * *

 

.

_ "Easy child." Henry grunted a response as he pushed himself for a sitting position. "Going too hard will break more than help." Henry looked at the older woman, Nana, who was sitting with him at the hospital. _

_ "You're eloquent." The woman smiled. _

_ "I've got to have someway to make a living." Henry snorted before wincing. "Everything's going to be sore...the doctor is still running tests, but the consensus is that you had a heat stroke." Henry frowned; that didn't seem right. The woman seemed to notice. "You don't think that's it?" _

_ "I just never thought-" _

_ "Most of the time it's never thought about, it's a surprise to all, even to those that plan and expect." Henry didn't look impressed. "Well am I wrong?" Henry sighed and shook his head. _

_ "Are the other two ok?" Nana nodded simply. _

_ "Yes, they were understandably frightened when you fell, but I think they're alright now." As she said that, the two children came into the room, followed by a doctor. The two children excitedly talked to Henry, happy that he was alright. For a few moments, Henry felt at peace, as the children tried helping the doctor, who was obviously trying to keep a straight face humoring the two as Nana smiled softly, though Henry noticed she was fiddling with a rosary in one of her hands,slipping it under Henry's pillow. He looked at Nana, who mouthed to him, 'I will explain later' before patting his shoulder gently, leaving the former animator puzzled, wondering what she meant. _

 

* * *

_ Susie was the brave one to enter the office of Joey after the ‘incident’. The man in question barely even reacted to the woman carefully opening the door, the man staring at his desk while his hands supported his weight as he leaned against the desk. _

_ "Mr. Drew?" She asked softly and got a pathetic grunt from the now single owner of the studio. "I-We, wanted to check on you…." Joey slowly looked up; gaunt and drained even more than he was normally. Susie sighed softly before walking over to Joey, careful to be gentle and methodical in her movements, to not send her boss over the edge, as she helped him back into the chair and helped move things around the desk, so she could make sure he didn't accidentally hurt himself if he hit his head against the desk again. _

_ "He's gone…" Joey mumbled slowly. "Henry….gone…" Susie pursed her lips, remembering the yelling match earlier before Henry stormed out of the studio, not even bothering to grab his things before leaving. "It's all my fault…" Joey looked at his hands and Susie frowned slightly, now knowing why Henry’s jaw looked bruised as he stormed out. “I-I’m a monster…to do that...” _

_ "No…you’re not..." She said slowly, careful with her words. "It's...probably the stress that caused it." Joey looked at her. "You boys have been working nonstop to bring Bendy shorts to everyone; in fact I don't think either one of you had a break or any time off in the last few weeks. Have you even been home, away from the studio at all?" Joey looked away sheepishly, before Susie took Joey's head in her hands and made him look at her. "I think Henry just needs some time to rest, as do you as well." She added just a hint of stern to her voice, to make sure Joey got the message that he needed to hear, at least for the sake of the business. "Besides, Henry left most of his things, so he'll be back, he just needs to cool off too. Or else Wally and Norman are going to fight about who is going to keep it." Joey looked at her before a smile crept onto his face. _

_ "You're right…" Susie smiled. _

_ "You know it," She patted his cheek with one of her hands. "Now, you get packed so you head home; Sammy and Wally can close the place for the night." She stood up and headed to the door. She paused a moment before turning back to her boss. "It will be alright, Mr. Drew...Tomorrow's a new day after all." Joey nodded and Susie left, leaving the man alone in his thoughts. Joey slowly started to grab his things, knowing full well that Susie would drag him out, or have Sammy help her drag him out, if he took too long. He had to admit, the woman was committed to make sure everyone was staying healthy. He paused as he looked at one of the books he had found; it was a book on different demonic beings. For show research he claimed, whenever anyone raised an eyebrow. He leaned against the desk and flipped through the pages absently, before stopping on a page he hadn't gotten to yet. _

_ "Protection demons?" He read aloud before skimming the page; as strange as it sounded, there was evidence that people had summon demons to act as guardians, protectors of sort. It sounded a bit like guardian angels, though more proactive and in the world with the person they were assigned or bonded too. Joey paused as an idea formed in his mind; perhaps there was another way for him to help his closest friend. Joey smirked as he carefully dog-eared the page to go back to it later and grabbed his items and left the office, he had some planning to do tonight. _


	14. The Ritual Continues

**Inky Depths Below**

_ A Bendy and the Ink Machine Fan Fiction _

Chapter 14: The Ritual Continues

Joey growled as he retraced his steps, trying to find them; it was not time for hiding, it was time to do the proper ritual to fix Henry! He couldn't believe his luck; the demon wasn't doing what it was supposed to do. It didn't make sense, he did the ritual correctly, he was sure of it! He didn't try and use Henry as a connection to bring the demon here, nor did he use the 'ink method' that he had tried with Sammy and most of the Music Department. Joey shook his head, ink droplets coming off of him, as he stormed the halls, the Searchers whimpering and trying to huddle away. He vaguely remembered what they were before all this ink, but it didn't matter; they followed his orders and that was all that mattered.

"Henry…" He growled. "Where is he?!" He got nothing in response before he paused; was he hearing someone new? He frowned, the sound sounded to someone trying to stifle their tears, though it sounded slightly familiar. Joey slithered towards the sound, a playful curiosity starting to replace the anger, why would anyone be sad down here? Joey puffed his cheeks in a strangely comedic way; He needed to remedy that as soon as possible! 

.

* * *

 

.

_ Wally was pretty good at keeping a straight face as he met Henry for the first time; the animator was excitedly explaining the ideas he had for the first 'Bendy' short; calling it "The Dancing Demon" or something like that. He had to admit, this young man was a breath of fresh air, compared to what he had been dealing with less than a few weeks earlier. _

_ "So whadda think?" Henry asked, after catching his breath. "Are you on board?" Wally chuckled. _

_ "Well, I'm not much of an animator," Wally bit his tongue as he watched the other man lean back in his chair, thinking, his tongue sticking out slightly. _

_ "That's not really that big of an issue…" _

_ "Henry!" The man snapped out of his thoughts and looked at the man coming in; Joey Drew, Wally noted. He already knew Joey technically; they were in the same unit during the war, though he didn't make an effort to be overly social with the other man. He wasn't mean, but Wally just felt something was off with the guy. "I thought you said you were going to rest!" Wally noted the momentary face falling from Henry before the shorter man smiled. _

_ "I did for a bit." Joey didn't look convinced before seeing Wally. _

_ "Lit. Franks?" _

_ "Just call me Wally, Drew." Wally said simply. "And I was walking by, and noticed Henry's drawings...and he started telling about this little 'Bendy' guy." Was he lying a tad, especially since he only came over over when he spotted Henry struggling to move boxes? Perhaps, but Wally knew that something was up between the two, especially judging from how Henry reacted to seeing Joey's scolding. He saw Henry's thankful look before the man looked back at Joey. _

_ "I was offering him a chance to work with us, Joey!" Joey nodded slowly, as if considering it. _

_ "Yeah, I mean, I might only be good for grunt work, but I can help." Wally said. "But if you don't need me, then I'll be outta ya hairs." _

.

* * *

 

.

Bendy was quiet as Alice continued to help calm Henry down.

"You ok?" Bendy looked up at Boris/Sammy/Wally standing next to him and shrugged.

"I don't know what to think. Or even do…" Bendy whispered. "I mean...I don't know how to really explain it…" Boris nodded and sat next to him. "I mean on the one hand, Joey either created or summoned me with the initial purpose to help Henry...but I guess I'm not doing it right? But I'm also mad that Henry left, kinda?" Bendy shook his head. "And like I have memories of the cartoons like they actually happened to me...but I know they're not really real? And I have this really weird feeling of emptiness...like I'm missing something, but I don't know what it is…" Boris nodded, deep in thought. “I just feel all mixed up and jumbled!”

"I totally understand how you're feeling…" Bendy looked up at the wolf. "I mean, the mismatch of all the emotions and memories; it's a bit unnerving, but I say just roll with it…We'll get outta here in no time." Bendy nodded glumly and Boris smirked. "And of course we're going to have to introduce you the number of cakes there are besides Devil and Angel Food Cakes." That seemed to catch Bendy's attention as he looked up at Boris.

"Really?!" Boris chuckled before he started telling him about the desserts he remembered, Bendy becoming completely engrossed as Henry wiped his eyes and absently cleaned his glasses as Alice sat next to him.

"Are you going to be ok, Henry?" She asked as the older man nodded slowly.

"I think so...strangely…" Alice raised an eyebrow. "As horrible as it sounds, I almost feel grateful that I got that off my chest…." Alice nodded, a soft smile on her face as Henry sighed. "I had that bottled up so long...but now we just need to get out of here with our lives…"

"Why would we leave?" Henry and Alice turned, wondering why Bendy would say that, only to see that it wasn't Bendy. “This place is supposed to be fun!”

"J-Joey?" Henry managed out before he slumped, everything catching up and overwhelming the old man, causing him to faint with a groan.

"Henry!" Alice exclaimed, trying to shake the man awake before looking up at the monstrous owner of Sillyvision Studios, biting back a gulp of fear as the inky man tilted his head to one side, as if curious as to what just happened.

“Why’d he slump over?”

"He...uh...fainted I guess?"

"Why?" Alice looked around the room and saw Boris and the actual Bendy, equally shocked at seeing Joey, and dumbfounded at the man's behavior right now. "Is there a monster in here?" Alice took this as her chance.

"Oh yes! There's a terrible monster in here, just frightful!" Joey looked around, appearing cartoonishly scared. "But it's invisible and reappears at will! Oh! I think I saw it head into the hallway!"Joey turned to look back the hallway. “Oh won’t someone make sure that thing doesn’t cause more trouble?” Joey blinked slowly before straightening up.

"I'll see if I can catch it Miss Angel!" Joey turned and quickly ran out of the room. Boris quickly shut the door and made sure it was locked this time and looked at Alice, who was surprised at what Joey had called her; wasn't that how Bendy referred to her in the cartoons?

"What the *fog horn* was that all about?! What the *doorbell* Joey on?!" Alice shrugged as Bendy furrowed his brows, as if he was realizing something.

“Why do you think I have a *klaxton* idea Wally?! I’m the one covering your *car engine sputtering* while you stare on like this is some *klaxton* theatre show!!”  


	15. The Ritual is Completed

**Inky Depths Below**

_ A Bendy and the Ink Machine Fan Fiction _

Chapter 15: The Ritual is Completed

_ Early-Mid 1960s _

" _ What is it Henry?" Henry looked up from the paper and at the older man. _

_ "I can't believe it either, but it's really his handwriting!" Henry exclaimed as he showed the letter to the shopkeeper and his boss, Walter Mints. Henry was still surprised and a bit shocked, he had received a letter from Wally or other friends still at the studio once and awhile before the war had broken out, but here it was in his hands; a letter from his former friend, Joey Drew. "He's invited to me to head back to the studio...says he's got something to show me…" _

_ "And are you going to go?" Henry paused, honestly haven’t thought about that part yet. _

_ "I'm not sure...I mean, it's been thirty years since I last saw him…And last time we saw each other, we had a rather nasty fight..." Henry absently rubbed his jaw as Walter nodded understandingly. _

_ "Well, it's better late than never to talk to him," Walter offered. "Besides, you might be able to get some new stories for the kids or convince him to come back to the island..." Both men chuckled as Henry nodded. _

_ "Yeah, you're right, I'll see if I can arrange a quick trip there in the next few weeks...it would be nice to see how everyone's doing." _

.

* * *

 

.

Joey looked down the halls before he stopped; what the hell was he doing? He was looking for where Henry went, he had heard something, and then everything had gone black, like he wasn't there.

"Strange…No matter then, it’s not that important." He shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts; which were foggy and slow, like he was swimming in molasses. Joey furrowed his brows. "I will find him and finish the ritual for…the ritual…the ritual?" Joey was drawing a blank; what was he supposed to be doing? He looked at the ground and focused, forcing himself to try and remember. "I need to do something..with a ritual? Or was it something else?" He frowned. "Was it something to do with my old buddy Henry?" Joey looked around slowly. "Where is Henry by the way? I know I had sent him that letter a while ago…” Joey tapped his chin with an inky claw before he snapped his fingers. “I got it! I'll just retrace my steps!" Joey paused, wondering why he felt the need to say that outloud before shaking it off and retracing his steps, absently whistling a cheerful jaunty to himself, with even the Searchers giving each other confused glances before scurrying away, hearing the Ink Machine rumble above them, causing the floorboards to creak and groan.

.

* * *

 

.

_ "Ok, so what's the purpose of this new version of that machine?" _

_ "I've got no clue Norman." The two men looked at the ink machine. "I'm still trying to figure out why the hell Sammy couldn't give the plans to Joey himself." Norman shrugged. _

_ "Might be that chicken scratch. You know how Joey is, especially since Henry left..." Wally raised an eyebrow and Norman pointed to the scribbling on the back of the blueprints. "See right here…" Wally looked it over and pursed his lips; he didn't remember seeing it before handing it off to Joey, but he guessed he didn't bother to look in the back. _

_ "What the hell is that supposed to be?" Wally asked slowly as he tried reading it. "It looks like a little kid wrote it…" _

_ "I'd almost say that it looks like a curse or a blessing...or a contract looking thing…" _

_ "What have you been smoking?" _

_ "Just saying, but even that doesn't seem right; Sammy's a preacher's kid, he'd have no clue how to do any of that demonic occult shit." Wally nodded before they heard a pipe bang and groan. The two echoed the groan. "And who even thinks Sammy made this? These blueprints are fucking horrible and Preacher Boy is as big as a perfectionist as some people we know." Wally snorted. _

_ "Valid point, Norman...Valid point." _

.

* * *

 

.

"He's still breathing…" Alice sighed, filled with relief as she pulled away from Henry’s chest. "I don't know how long he'll be out though for…"

"Well, we can't stay here." Bendy said simply. "But what was going on with Joey? He was acting like me, at least how I remember the shorts being…He shouldn't have been that easy to trick…" Boris nodded in agreement as Bendy furrowed his brows as he thought deeply as Boris sighed.

"Yeah, the sooner we get outta here, the better…Alice, you think you can help move Henry enough so I can pick him enough to carry?" Alice nodded before carefully try to move the old man, who groaned. "Ok, maybe we shouldn't move him yet…."

"Aha!" The three toons turned and saw Joey voice. "My steps lead back here!" Boris and Alice paled as Joey tried the door, before forcing the door open. "Henry-Oh!" Both Boris and Alice stood in front of Henry, not wanting to see what Joey wanted to do, as Bendy seemed to gain an air of confidence as if he knew how to fix this. "Who...what…wait a minute..."

"Well, buddy, who do you happen to be?" Bendy asked casually, earning confused looks from Alice and Boris. Joey opened his mouth to say his name, but closed it, frowning.

"I...I...don't remember…" Bendy nodded simply.

"Well that's a bit of bummer…" Bendy said as if he was talking to a small child. "How about I help ya out?" Joey cocked his head in confusion before smiling.

“How would you do that Mr…?”

“Just call me Bendy.” Bendy said smoothly. “And for your first question, see I got some...magic-”

“Like a wizard?” Alice and Boris stole glances at each other before looking back at the conversation as Bendy merely chuckled.

“Minus the beard and goofy hats, but yeah. See, all I’ll need you to just take my hand,” Bendy held out one of his hands. “And shake it. And then you’ll remember who you are~” Joey frowned slightly, a look of hesitation flashing across his face as Bendy’s smile widened. “So whadda say buddy? Do we have a deal?” Joey blinked slowly before beaming.

"Yeah! Thanks pal!" Joey took Bendy's hand and they shook before Joey straightened up like he was at the receiving end of a joy buzzer. His grin faltered a bit as he tried to let go of Bendy's hand, but their hands were fused together. Bendy kept his smile on his face as the two continued to melt, their ink starting to pool together.

"B-Bendy!" Alice exclaimed. "W-What are you doing?!" Joey struggled to get free from Bendy's grip as the demon turned and looked at Alice.

"Finishing the ritual." He said as if was obvious as Joey hollowed like a wounded animal before his form trembled and there were sickening popping and cracking sounds as he seemed to be withering away in horrific fashion, like a melting figure made of clay. "Be back in a minute." With that, the two seemed to dissolve into a large ink puddle. There was a deathly still silence between the two remaining toons as Henry made a grunt and began forcing himself awake.

"W-What happened…?" He managed out before realizing something was wrong, judging by the two horrified looks the toons had on their faces. "Susie? Wally? Sammy?What happened? I just remember seeing Joey…and where's Bendy?"

"That devil did something to Joey…And they melted to that..." Sammy managed out quietly before the ink puddle rippled and made a slurping noise. Everyone tensed as an ink figure rose, before taking a familiar form. The dancing demon smiled playfully as he adjusted his newly added bow-tie, clearly bemused by everyone's reactions.

"Did ya miss me?"


	16. Curtain Call

**Inky Depths Below**

_ A Bendy and the Ink Machine Fan Fiction _

Chapter 16: Curtain Call

"B-Bendy?" Alice asked slowly, not fully believing what she was seeing, as the demon stretched his arms, his smug smile still plastered on his face.

"That's my name, don't wear it out."

"H-How…? Where…?" Alice struggled to find the words as she tried to figure out what questions should be first. Luckily, Boris spoke for everyone.

"What the *klaxton* did we just witness?!" Bendy chuckled sheepishly rubbing the back of his head.

"Besides what I said earlier? Well, it's a bit complicated and the details are still trickling in-pun intended-so you better get comfy…" Bendy wiped the area beneath him before plopping down sitting across from the others. "Ok, so we all know Joey was planning to summon a protection demon for ya Henry, ‘cause he wanted to make sure you didn’t kick the bucket and he thought he was being a good friend by doing that, right?" Bendy paused as he gauged the reactions before sighing and rubbing the bridge of his non-existent nose. "Lemme try that again; We all know Joey was playing with crap he shouldn't have, can we agree on that much?" The others nodded slowly. "Now, Joey got bits and pieces of the summoning ritual right, and he did parts of them in the right order, however, the problem is that he forgot the crucial thing with dealing with the devil, so to speak."

"Call a local priest?"

"Call some paranormal mooks with goofy backpacks?" Bendy gave Boris a look, who shrugged.

"There's always a catch?" Henry asked slowly and Bendy made a finger gun with his hand and 'fired' it at Henry.

"Bingo." He said. "See, Joey obviously wanted to make sure that his plan worked, that's why he tested it on the staff first, some more successful than others….But the thing is, there's a cost...With Miss Susie," He gestured to Alice. "You were the most 'connected' to the character of Alice Angel, so Joey figured if he got the ritual right, then he'd be able to do the same to Henry, since he also had a ‘connection’ with a character." Alice's face fell. "But since he decided that not telling you about the ritual, there was a hiccup, hence you being literally connected, scrambling your memories...I mean maybe they’ll settle and reorganize, but I can’t make any promises..." Alice made a quiet 'oh' sound. "As for Wally and Sammy, well, Joey tried two-well three-different ways to make sure you still had your memories. And he majorly goofed with that…" Bendy chuckled nervously. “No idea why he went with the whole ‘Prophet’ and me being a religious figure shindig…”

"Can it be reversed?" Bendy shrugged at the wolf's question.

"Don't think there's a return policy on demonic summonings for cartoon characters…." Boris groaned in disgust and Alice sniffled, rubbing her eyes. "Hey, hey, no tears, it's not so bad!" Both toons looked at Bendy, unimpressed. "Ok, it's kinda bad, admittedly, but at least you aren't puddles?"

"But that doesn't explain that ink machine…." Henry muttered and Bendy snorted.

"Actually, it does! You see, Joey built it to act as a way to keep me here fully; kinda like delaying the end result so that he could perfect the ritual and get you back here and do the ritual and boom, we're connected, bonded, whatever fancy word you wanna call it! Obviously that didn't go so well, at least for him…" Henry took a slow deep breath as he absently touched his chest, remembering that 'heat stroke' he had suffered several years back that he still wasn’t sure how it happened; was it possible that it was because of Joey screwing with things that shouldn't be screwed with? As if reading his mind, Bendy answered. "Yeah, that's why you passed out wherever you where; Joey used whatever he had in hand that was essentially 'you'-barring a few things-to offer your soul to bring me here. Granted the end result should've been you feeling compelled to come back to the studio...so I've got no clue how you managed-" Henry gasped as he clutched something around his neck.

"The rosary!" The toons looked at him in confusion and Henry went mildly red. "U-Uh...one of the customers that came to the market I worked at, gave me a rosary after I had blacked out and aren't those used for protection or something?" Alice raised an eyebrow and Henry gave her a look. "Don't even toy with that idea, Susie! There was no relationship with her other than friends!"

"Anyways!" Bendy said, clapping his hands to get everyone's attention. "Since you weren't there, and didn't come, at least not right away, and since the ritual called for a person's full soul...I kinda...sort of…"

"You took his soul!?"

"Technically?" Bendy shrugged. "I mean there's only so long I can stay without anything…but I wasn't even aware I was doing that…" Bendy shut his eyes as he continued. "At least until that sixth time the machine broke…I realized that something wasn't working…so…I tried fixing it...To make me fully here, if that makes any sense..." He let out a sigh. "I started to talk to Sammy...to get him to make something that could fix the machine...but whatever Joey was doing to him and the music department made it difficult…he started losing it and Joey capitalized on that, manipulating him to be my prophet or something stupid like that...and sacrifice more of the staff to keep me here..." Boris was stunned. "And admittedly it kinda worked...especially when you got Joey to build it, Wally, but then Joey shut the machine down once he released it wasn't doing what he needed….His mind was slipping Henry..." Bendy sighed. "He was so desperate and he started losing why he wanted to summon me in the first place…he wasn’t himself anymore...so…"

"So…?" Henry asked slowly, not truly wanting to hear the answer.

"So I had to arrange things…” Bendy said, sighing softly before looking at Henry. “I mean Joey was the one who wrote you the letter-that was all him, I think he was planning on fusing you to me, but to actually be Bendy and start up the cartoons again I guess..." Bendy chuckled bitterly. "But I kept trying to make sure that you were one step ahead of Joey...course the machine being shut off for so long, I was out of it till just recently. So, sorry about trying to strangle you multiple times…" Henry was stunned and silent and Bendy chuckled nervously. "But hey, you started up the machine, which helped me out by basically speeding up the ritual and then tada, fused with Joey in a sense."

"Whadda mean 'in a sense'?!" Boris exclaimed and Bendy had a sheepish grin.

"Remember how Henry mentioned there's always a catch?" Bendy said slowly. "Whatever Joey's intentions were in the beginning, for good or for ill, he wanted to have control...and he's paid the price for it." Bendy let that hang in the air as everyone took that information and processed that. Henry was silent; his best friend was gone. He wondered for a brief moment if there was anything that he could've done to stop Joey before shaking his head; even if he hadn't had the fight and left, Joey would've still done this, the man wasn't referred to as a 'stubborn old hen' behind his back for nothing. Henry sighed slowly before breaking the silence.

"So Joey's dead?" Bendy looked surprised.

"What? Oh *bell whistle* no! No, he's not dead!" Bendy exclaimed quickly before tapping the side of his head. "He's fused with me, though he's gonna be out for a while…and even then he's not going to be that much in control...So essentially he’s me and I’m him..." Henry nodded slowly before there was the sound of several pipes breaking.

"Shit! What the hell was that?!"

"We should probably get going...like right now!" Bendy exclaimed as he helped Henry up. If he was being honest, Henry was expecting more burning from his hand, but instead nothing happened. As if sensing his question, Bendy spoke. "Since I'm technically 'complete' no need for your soul for me to use. The mark’s gonna stay though, so long as I’m protecting your clumsy butt." Henry didn't look impressed as Bendy chuckled. "Don't worry buddy, not more rituals are gonna happen, just a delightfully dancing demon and the other two, now, in the words of Wally, let's get outta here!" He pretty much started to drag Henry along, the other two following as ink started to flood more and more, with parts of the ceiling falling behind them. "The stairs should be around this corner, come on!"

.

* * *

 

.

"So then, there we were, stuck and listening to that idiot drone on and on and on about how amazing this was and how we were fools, though frankly, in my opinion, we weren't the two that tied up two people and going on about how great our plan was." The children sat excitedly as their storyteller continued to tell the tale, enwrapped with the story, as Henry and Walter watched in bemusement as parts of the story Bendy was telling the children were acted it out with the 'help' of Boris. It had been several weeks since the events of Henry and the others escaping the studio, which with a thunderous groan, collapsed upon itself as a they barely made it out of the studio, it's mysteries blocked off from the rest of the world. It still took some getting used to; after all, Henry spent a good chunk of his years there, but he knew that it was for the best; last thing was some moron to get themselves killed or mess with things they shouldn't. Of course that didn’t keep the nightmares or the sense of unease away, but Henry knew he would power through, especially with his former coworkers-turned-toons living with him now.

"Pretty lively fella." Walter said, bringing Henry from his thoughts. "Glad the kids enjoy him…"

"Yeah, admittedly surprised that no one freaked out that much." Henry admitted, thinking about when he first introduced his 'former coworkers' to his friends. There was surprise and concern, of course, but Henry had honestly expected to be run out of town with whom he brought back. Walter shrugged absently.

"It's strange, but frankly, it's a much better strange than the strange we've dealt with Henry. I’d take the toons, then deal with soldiers with no sense of picking up after themselves and making a mess of my shop." Henry laughed before sighing.

"Yeah…"

"And now! We must break!" Bendy said dramatically, earning giggles from the children and an eyeroll from Boris.

"Can I at least be untied first?" Bendy looked at Boris as if he had forgotten the wolf was tied to a chair, earning more giggles and snickering from the audience.

"Well, I guess I could…" Bendy looked at the kids. "Should I untie him?" Boris made a face as the kids yelled their different answers, while some kids were pointing out Alice who was 'sneaking' and untying Boris, not that Bendy 'noticed'. "Looks like the generous consensus is no, Boris-bud...dy?" Boris, now untied, was tapping his foot, his arms crossed, though Henry saw the playful smirk on the wolf's face.

"I think somebody owes me and the kids some candy." Bendy mocked like he was offended as the kids 'turned' on Bendy, excited on getting some free candy. Bendy opened his mouth to argue but then sighed, the children excitedly cheering.

“Fiiiiiine….”

"You all meet us there and wait for us, ok?" The kids quickly rushed to the area where the candy was stored as Alice chuckled.

"The children seem to really like the stories." She said as the trio walked to where Henry and Walter were. Bendy placed his hands behind his back.

"Either that or they like the big floofy mutt here." Boris looked at Bendy.

"Or they much prefer your bribery." Sammy's voice was ladened with sarcasm as Alice shook her head.

"Honestly you two? You're acting worse than the kids." She stated as Henry chuckled at the reactions, a small memory coming back to him, in the early days of the studios. He wiped his eyes as the toons looked at him.

“Henry, are you alright?” Alice started as Bendy huffed.

“You’re definitely getting old Henry; getting all sentimental ‘n stu-OW!” Bendy glared at Alice as Boris let out a snort and Henry’s chuckling got stronger, which was borderline snorting as Walter coughed lightly, grabbing everyone’s attention before a fight broke out.

"Well," Walter interrupted. "You better go help the kids, I don't think they'll wait much longer."

"I'll help you guys out," Henry said as he led the way. "Besides, I know the best candy here."

"Awesome!" Bendy exclaimed. "Lead the way!" Walter chuckled to himself as he watched the four head over to the children to help out pick out the sweet treats.

"You are one interesting man, Henry…that's definitely for sure..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here is the final chapter! Thank you all for reading!
> 
> I will definitely be returning to this AU in the future!


End file.
